Kuroshitsuji 3
by fangirl05
Summary: Continuation of my finale rewrite. No smut, occasionally some fluff or angst.
1. At Peace

**A/N:** Well, the finale rewrite was supposed to stop there, but then I got to daydreaming and... This happened. First of all, I would like to thank everyone who reviewed and/or added said rewrite and His Butler, Et Cetera (which I really want to get back to) to their favorites, or added me to their favorite authors list or author alert. I feel like I should remember your names, but I don't. Nevertheless, you have my thanks.

So now we're just gonna go on living like Season 2 never happened. Just imagine "His Butler," in front of all the titles.

Now on with the story!

* * *

><p><strong>XXX<strong>

**Warning: Contains Soma being Soma, some Ciel/Elizabeth, possible OOC - ness and many lemons.**

**XXX**

"Good morning, young master" Sebastian lets himself into Ciel's bedroom, "I trust you slept well."

The boy sighs and rubs the sleep from his eyes. Sebastian's smirk as he rummages through the armoire does not escape his notice. "What are you smirking at?" he lowers his eyebrows at him. Sebastian kneels in front of him and strips off his night shirt. "Nothing, young master" he answers, "It's just nice to be able to do this again."

"Idiot" Ciel rolls his eyes.

Sebastian just smiles as he dresses his master in a white shirt and black shorts. "For breakfast today I have prepared Eggs Florentine with a bit of cured ham." He buttons the boy's shirt and gray vest. "As a side dish, I have baked scones with your choice of either strawberry or grape preserves or lemon curd. Which would you prefer?"

"The curd." Ciel lifts his legs to allow for Sebastian to slide a pair of dark gray knee socks up his calves. "Very good" the former smiles. He rises from his crouch and pours the tea. "For tea this morning I have selected New Moon Drop." He bows and hands him the cup. "The scent of it reminds me of the taste of your soul" he smiles. Ciel frowns at him and sniffs the tea. "It smells strange" he comments before taking a sip. Sebastian's smile wavers. "Is it not to your liking?"

"It's fine." Ciel sets the cup on his nightstand and dons his rings. "What are today's plans?"

Sebastian smiles. "You have no lessons or meetings scheduled, and there are currently no incidents requiring your attention. The day is yours to do with as you please." He ties a blue ribbon around his neck.

Ciel stares darkly at him. "What was it you said last night about my having a full schedule today?" he almost growls. Sebastian leans back and smiles widely. "Well, I had to say something to make you go back to sleep" he answers. Ciel scowls at him, and he dips his head and lays his hand over his heart. "But I _will_ be honest with you about such matters in the future."

"See that you are." Ciel doesn't look at Sebastian as he slides his black - and - white shoes on. The latter chuckles. He stands quickly at a sudden knocking at Ciel's door. "Come in!" the boy calls. Maylene nervously pokes her head in. "Young master, lady Elizabeth has arrived."

"Ah." Ciel finishes the last of his tea and stands. "I will see her." He threads his arms through the sleeves of his black - collared blue coat. "Let's go, Sebastian."

"Yes."

...

"CIIIEEEEEL!"

A pink - and - blonde tornado whirls into the foyer and smacks into Ciel's chest. The poor boy has to spin in a circle to avoid falling onto his back. "Too tight!" he groans against Elizabeth's grip. "I wanted to come see you!" she declares with a bright smile, "You're always busy with something! Huh?" She suddenly seems to notice what Ciel is wearing. "Yuck! What's with these clothes?" she exclaims, "They are certainly not cute! They don't suit you at all!"

Ciel glances at his clothes speculatively. "Huh" he remarks, "Perhaps you're right. Maybe I should change, like I did that day."

"Huh? 'Like I did that day'?" Elizabeth repeats, "Ciel, are you saying... You remember?"

"Yes." He smiles charmingly and holds out his hand. "Will you dance with me, Lizzy?"

Her eyes brim with happy tears. "O - of course!" she beams. Ciel dabs at her eyes and they assume a waltz position. "Shall I perform a piece for you to dance to, young master?" Sebastian asks with a small bow. "The gramophone is working fine" Ciel answers decisively, "And besides," - he glances up at Sebastian - "You have a lot of chores to attend to. _Right_, Sebastian?"

Sebastian takes the hint and smiles before bowing again. "Understood" he answers. He sets up the gramophone on his way out. He stops at the top of the stairs and watches for a moment as Ciel leads Elizabeth flawlessly through the dance. He chuckles quietly as he walks down the hall, lifting his hand thoughtfully to his lips. "So _that's_ what demon blood does to a human" he muses, "How interesting."

...

Sebastian is in the middle of dusting when a ringing bell informs him that his young master needs him in the kitchen. He swipes the dust rag over the mantle once more and readjusts his jacket as he heads downstairs.

...

"You called for me, young master?"

Ciel and Elizabeth are seated at the table. A plate covered with the remains of eggs Florentine and scones sits in front of the former. "Bring my cane to the foyer" he orders, "We'll be waiting for you."

"Yes, sir" Sebastian bows. He sniggers at the image of a smiling Ciel offering his arm to Elizabeth in the corner of his eye.

...

Sebastian holds Ciel's cane out to him as he adjusts his jacket. "Elizabeth wants to walk in the gardens" he says over his shoulder as he loops his arm with hers, "Have lunch ready for us when we return."

"Yes, my lord" Sebastian bows. Elizabeth leans her head against Ciel's shoulder, and Sebastian turns his back on the two children.

...

The ringing of the phone startles him a bit. He wasn't expecting any phone calls for his young master today. He furrows his brow in puzzlement and lifts the receiver to his ear.

"Phantomhive residence."

"Sebastian!"

"Ah, Agni. It's good to hear from you."

"We haven't seen you or master Ciel in a while" the Indian says cheerfully, "How are things going?"

"I am well, as is my young master" he answers. He can hear what sounds like struggling going on in the background, and suddenly someone is panting on the other end. "Where's Ciel? !" Soma's voice demands, "Is he there? ! How is he doing? !"

"My young master is fine, Prince Soma" Sebastian tries to sound reassuring. He smiles deviously. "His memory seems to have returned in full."

"_What_? !" the prince shrieks into the receiver. Sebastian's head jerks back out of reflex. "Agni, did you hear? !" he raves, even thought there's no way he could have, "When did he get his memory back? !"

"Around half a week ago" Sebastian answers.

"And you're only telling us _now_? !" Soma demands angrily, "We're coming over!"

"Wait, my pri - " Agni starts to try to talk some sense into the excitable prince, and the line goes dead. Sebastian is smirking again as he hangs up. "Oh, dear" he smiles wickedly, "It seems I may have caused a bit of trouble for my young master." He lifts a bent finger to his lips thoughtfully. "Perhaps I should inform him that he will have guests arriving later."

He glances out a window to see Ciel and Elizabeth walking through the hedge maze. "Then again," he smiles, "as a butler, who am I to spoil his fun?"

...

Elizabeth turns her head toward Ciel, then looks away, and repeats the action as they round another corner. "Is something wrong?" Ciel finally asks. She seems startled by his question. "Uh... N - no" she says quickly, clutching more tightly onto his arm. "What is it?" he pries. She smiles slowly and looks up at him. "It's just... It's been so long since we spent time together like this, just the two of us" she admits. She hugs his arm tighter as her eyes tear up a little. "I missed it, Ciel. I've missed you."

Her eyes widen a little as Ciel's head touches against hers. "I have too, Lizzy" he answers, "I like it when you come over. Really."

She smiles and leans her head against Ciel's shoulder. "Me, too."

...

"Is lunch ready yet, Sebastian?"

Sebastian is waiting for them on the veranda, at his usual post behind Ciel's seat. "It is, young master" he gestures at the table, "Braised pheasant with candied yams and fresh lemonade for you both."

"Thank you, Sebastian" Elizabeth beams as Ciel pulls her chair out for her. "The honor is mine, lady Elizabeth" Sebastian bows and pulls Ciel's seat out for him. The boy frowns in displeasure. "Understood" he backs away. Elizabeth cuts into a piece of the pheasant as Ciel seats himself_. _"Mmm!" she exclaims, "Everything you make is always so tasty, Sebastian!"

"I'm flattered" he smiles charmingly and bows, adding to himself that she really shouldn't talk with food in her mouth. Ciel rolls his eyes and goes to work on his own food.

...

"That was delicious, Sebastian" Elizabeth smiles at him as he clears her and Ciel's dishes. "Your praise is well - received, my lady" he returns the smile. He stops behind Ciel's chair on his way inside. "Oh, before I forget, young master," - or give you the opportunity to choke yourself on your drink - "Agni and Prince Soma will be coming over today."

"What? !" Ciel jumps out of his seat, furious, "When? !"

"I'm not sure" the butler answers thoughtfully, "I was expecting them to arrive on or about lunchtime." He beams. "I suppose they could appear at any time."

"Why are they coming over in the first place? !" Ciel demands, storming inside with Sebastian following placidly in his wake. "Agni called earlier and I _may_ have let it slip that your memory had returned" Sebastian answers, smiling brightly. "WHAT? !" Ciel is not pleased. The latter just shrugs. "It was Soma's decision" he says easily, "You know how excitable the Prince can get."

"I like Soma" Elizabeth says candidly, "He's so much fun!"

"CIEL!"

The prince in question throws himself around Ciel's shoulders and nuzzles his face into the boy's cheek, eyes streaming. "Ah," Sebastian raises his eyebrows, "speak of the devil." He smirks.

"Sebastian! Master Ciel!" Agni jogs in after his charge, waving at them. He bows quickly to Elizabeth. "It's good to see you too, miss Elizabeth."

"Hello, Agni" she curtsies to him.

"Soma, get off!" Ciel growls, "You're wrinkling my clothes!"

"So -" Soma backs off for a split second, "Then you - You mean - ? Shiva be praised!" he latches back onto Ciel's shoulder, sobbing joyfully, "You really _do_ remember me! Agni, isn't this wonderful?" He sweeps Ciel up into his arms. "We're going out!" he says decisively, "We need to celebrate you getting your memory back!"

"Why? !" Ciel struggles, "There's no reason to celebrate! Let go of me, dammit!"

"How can you say that, Ciel? !" Soma demands, squashing the poor boy further against his chest, "You forgot me, your best friend, and now you remember me! How can we _not_ celebrate that? !"

Sebastian reaches out and puts a hand on Soma's shoulder. "Forgive me, your highness," he says with his trademark smile, "But the young master has had a very hectic few weeks. A trip into the city may not be the best thing for his health."

"Staying cooped up inside all day is worse!" Soma protests. Sebastian smothers the urge to roll his eyes. What _exactly_ does the Prince know about medicine?

"I think that sounds like a good idea!" Elizabeth says brightly, "We could go shopping for some cute new clothes for you, Ciel! It'll be fun!"

"Then it's decided!" Soma turns back toward the door, "Lady Elizabeth and I will take Ciel into town!"

"I mean no disrespect, Prince Soma," Sebastian tries to be polite, "But I think it would be better if you had someone to chaperone you, and I have I have a bit more on my plate than usual." His eyes swivel around in his head. "The staff has been slacking in my and my young master's absence."

A familiar quarter of eavesdropping heads shrinks back behind a corner.

"Paula could come with us" Elizabeth suggests, "We'll all take good care of Ciel!" She salutes Sebastian.

"Right!" Soma agrees, somehow mimicking Elizabeth without dropping Ciel. Sebastian pretends to think for a minute. "Well, I don't any harm in it myself" he decides, smiling brightly. "What? !" Ciel shrieks. "However," he adds, serious, "The final decision is my young master's to make."

Ciel looks from Soma's pouting face to that of his fiancee, hands folded at him as if in prayer, looking like she might start crying, and sighs. "Fine," he concedes, "I'll go."

"Excellent!" Soma grins. He retreats with Lizzy and Ciel toward Paula, who has at some point slipped inside and is waiting by the door. "Oi! Wait!" Ciel orders again, "Would you wait for a minute? ! AND PUT ME DOWN ALREADY!"

Soma finally acquiesces and sets Ciel onto his feet. The boy promptly turns toward Sebastian and beckons with his hand. "Deliver a message to Lau for me while we're out" he orders, and whispers the message into Sebastian's ear. As he pulls back he adds, "I want filet of sole for dinner."

The butler smirks, then leans back and bows. "Yes, my lord."

Paula snaps the reins of the carriage and the four of them leave for the city. "Why don't you make yourself comfortable, Agni?" Sebastian suggests jovially, "I have a small matter to attend to in town. It won't take long."

...

Sebastian eyes the opium addicts sprawled all over the ground and on couches and in corners abhorrently. He's always understood why his young master kept this man as a pawn, but he's never known how he could stand him. The air in here is so thick with leftover opiates he struggles not to fan the air in front of his face. The scent is repugnant.

The man in question is stretched out on a couch with that girl, smoking like everyone else in the room. The girl acknowledges him first before Lau smiles at him. "Well, well, if it isn't Mr. butler. Been a while, hasn't it?" he says lightly.

"It has. I'm glad to see you are in good health" Sebastian lies. "You deserve the credit for letting me go" Lau takes another drag on his pipe, "And I played along with your little charade, so I guess we're even now, huh?"

"I suppose so" Sebastian agrees with another smile. Lan Mao kicks at his face, stopping a few inches short. "Lan Mao" Lau frowns disapprovingly at her. She backs off, but doesn't sit yet. "I've come here with a message from my young master" Sebastian continues when her leg lowers. "Ah," Lau smiles, "it's been a while since I've heard from the Earl. How's he doing?"

"He is well" Sebastian answers, then clears his throat and recites Ciel's message: "I did consider killing you, but decided it would be too much of a hassle on my part. Live as you like, but do it where I can't see."

"Oh, so he's regained his memory?" Lau realizes. He rubs Lan Mao's head. "That's good news, eh Lan Mao?"

He may start to say something else, but Sebastian is already gone.

...

Agni, Bard, Maylene and Finny are working on dinner by the time Sebastian returns. He sighs and ties an apron around his waist. "I really should keep you around more often, Agni" he remarks as he juliennes a few vegetables, "That's the only time anything seems to get done with everything intact."

Agni just laughs. "It's been so long since we've heard from you and master Ciel" he says, "What have you been doing, if you don't mind my asking?"

"Not at all" Sebastian answers, "We've been busy with Earl Trancy. He had been harassing my young master for a while, so that had to be cleared up, and was. Recently we were called by the queen to execute the Trancy butler. It turns out he murdered the young earl."

"How terrible!" Agni exclaims. -Like hell- "It is" Sebastian agrees, "Her majesty ordered the extermination of the entire Trancy faction. Apparently there was an inheritance scam in the process." That's the official story, anyway.

"How horrible" Agni sighs and sets his knife down. "I really do pity master Ciel sometimes, Sebastian" he looks deeply at him, "He doesn't lead a life any child should."

"Don't let _him_ catch you talking this way" Sebastian jokes. He looks pensively out the window. "Speaking of whom," he muses, "I wonder how he's holding up out there?"

...

Two hours away, in a clothing store he didn't bother to take the name of, Ciel is standing in the middle of Elizabeth talking with the tailor and Soma and Agni arguing over ridiculous patterns. Paula's arms are piled high with sets of clothes for both him and his fiancee. All the while he keeps his gaze fixed firmly ahead, not even bothering to hide his annoyance.

He hopes Sebastian can pick up on the 'You are a dead man' vibe he's putting out.

...

"You've arrived just in time for dinner" Sebastian bows the quartet in later that night. Ciel stops and glares up at him, at which Sebastian only smiles again.

"Can you help me carry these outfits inside, Sebastian?" Paula calls to him. Sebastian tries not to balk a the three - foot stack of hat boxes in her arms.

...

"I hope whatever punishment I know you have in store for me can wait until after dinner, young master" Sebastian says, turning towards the table, "Agni and I have prepared filet of soul over julienned vegetables, with cherry cider to drink."

Ciel pulls Elizabeth's chair out for her again, at which Soma mutters something about how smooth his best friend has become with women. Sebastian gnashes his teeth together to keep from laughing at that.

...

"I have prepared a lemon meringue pie for desert" Sebastian says as he and Agni clear the dishes away, "Can I tempt any of you?"

"No thanks, Sebastian" Soma stretches his arms over his head, "We have to be on our way. It's been busy today, right Agni?"

"Yes, my prince" Agni agrees, as always.

Ciel dips his fork into his own slice of pie.

"Lady Elizabeth, you should be getting home, too" Paula adds, "It's a rather long drive back to your estate, and I'm sure your mother will be worried."

"I guess you're right" Elizabeth sighs. Sebastian pulls her chair out for her, and Ciel stands and offers her his arm. She accepts and lets him lead her to the door. "Aren't they just precious?" Paula gushes, following briskly after her charge. Sebastian only smiles and follows after them all.

Elizabeth crushes Ciel in another hug. "I had a lot of fun today, Ciel" she smiles at him. "So did I" he returns the smiles and hug, "We'll have to do it again sometime."

Elizabeth grins and runs down the steps to her carriage. She waves to Ciel until her carriage is out of sight, then he sighs heavily and runs his fingers through his hair. "I believe a bath is in order" Sebastian states neutrally. Ciel brushes roughly past him.

...

"The young master is quite adorable when he shows his flirtatious side" he teases as he buttons his nightshirt, "And your dancing has improved greatly."

"Find a better use for your time than to spy on me" Ciel scolds him as he strips his rings off, "That's sleazy even for you."

"You really should invite Lady Elizabeth over more often" Sebastian smiles and turns the covers down, "You certainly seem to enjoy spending time with her."

"Oh, shut up." Ciel climbs into bed and Sebastian tucks them back over his shoulders. "What should I do about your new outfits, young master?" Sebastian asks as he takes the candelabrum. Ciel considers it for a few seconds. "Put them in the back of my wardrobe" he finally decides.

"Such a dutiful fiance" Sebastian smirks. He hasn't gotten nearly enough teasing in today, he thinks. "Already allowing her to twist you around her little finger and she hasn't even come out yet."

"Oh, shut up!" Ciel hunches his shoulders and closes his eyes. Sebastian chuckles as he blows out the candles.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Gotcha B}.

HA! Teasing fangirls is fun XD! Don't worry, the interesting stuff starts next time.


	2. A Stranger

**XXX**

**Warning: Contains OCs, possible OOC - ness, Sebastian being a whore, Seba/Ciel awkwardness and an OC being a whore.**

**XXX**

"It's time to get up, young master."

Sebastian draws the curtains back. Ciel sighs and sits up, stretching his arms wide. "A breakfast of sausage links and toast with scrambled eggs is waiting for you in the kitchen" he continues, "For tea, there is green tea sweetened with honey." He dresses Ciel quickly in a green outfit and gray ribbon, gray socks brown shoes, then bows and turns to leave. "Oh, and just in case you're interested," he adds. He glances over his shoulder on his way out.

"There has been another incident."

...

Over the last two weeks, there has been a string of bizarre arson cases plaguing the east end of greater London. The cases themselves barely make any sense; the buildings targeted are usually stone, unlikely to burn. There's no noticeable pattern to that attacks; different types of buildings, different areas of the city, different types of owners - ethnically speaking or otherwise; there's not even a shape or symbol left at the scenes by an egotistical criminal.

Ciel skims through the latest case file Sebastian has obtained. No pattern, no targeted victims, and no obvious motive.

"Sounds like fun" he decides with an arrogant little smirk.

...

Sebastian opens the carriage door for Ciel and the two approach Lord Randall and Aberline. "Good morning, Ciel!" Aberline waves to him as they pass. Ciel frowns as he nods at him. "Aberline."

"What brings you out here so early, count Phantomhive?" Randall asks sourly. Ciel smirks at him. "The same as you, sir Randall" he answers, "I want to find out who has been setting the city on fire."

Only Ciel, Sebastian and whoever it is parading around as Queen Victoria are privy to Ciel's letter of resignation as her Watchdog. Ciel figures that Randall will get word of it sometime, but until then, why not string him along a bit?

Sebastian's smirk widens a little at Randall's scowl. He has a few words for Randall about his little admission that he would torture his young master if he were able.

_"Not now"_ he reminds himself, _"It wouldn't do for the butler of Phantomhive to strike out in public at the commissioner of Scotland Yard."_

"I'd like to take a closer look at the crime scene" Ciel's voice snaps him out of his thoughts. He reveals some ancient document from the Queen to Randall, then turns to his butler. "Sebastian, see what information you can find out here.

"Understood" he bows. He watches as his young master disappears with Randall and Aberline, then shuts his eyes and draws a deep breath through his nose. His senses are even sharper than usual after his meal. His mouth quirks a little at the thought.

He walks up to the burned - out building and looks it over. The exterior isn't as badly damaged as the-

Hello, what's that?

Sebastian hurries up to the second story (the charred staircase miraculously doesn't cave in) and retrieves what he'd seen fluttering from the window: A torn bit of deep blue fabric, with a faint human male scent still on it.

Sebastian smirks and pockets the material. Too easy.

Hmm?

His ears perk up at the sound of young women giggling nearby. Out of the corner of his eye, he sees where they're coming from.

Three girls, all about the same age, are standing together as young girls do. They all look about their late teens or early twenties, all of them wearing some kind of light colored dress. A girl with straight red hair in a dark pink dress and parasol who looks to be the primer inter pares, a girl with brown hair in a green dress, and a shorter girl in a white dress and with long hair that is either extremely wavy or slightly curly, and so dark brown that anyone other than him would have called it black. All of them have pale skin, which makes the little dark - haired one's blush all that more noticeable. The first two, probably sisters, are whispering and sniggering at their shorter friend, glancing meaningfully in his general direction, while she gestures for them to be quiet. He can smell the dark - haired one's virginity from here.

Sebastian smirks. He can't pass this up.

He gives his hair a quick flip and saunters over to them. The little one darts behind her redheaded companion, and Sebastian chokes on a laugh. This is going to be hilarious, he's sure.

"Can I help you with something?" he asks them pleasantly, "Forgive me if I'm wrong, but it looked like you were staring at me back there."

"Well, um," the redhead smiles deviously and shakes her hips a little, "_she_ was."

She bumps her unfortunate dark - haired friend forward and shrinks back a bit with her alleged sister, giggling and waving her forward. The dark - haired girl looks in terror from them to Sebastian and back. "And does _she_ have a name?" he asks the shivering girl. He can see the tips of her hair bouncing as she shakes. "M - Marisa!" she finally yelps, wringing her hands. "Hawthorne" she adds quietly. "Well, Marisa Hawthorne," Sebastian bends over and kisses the top of her hand. He glances up at her through his eyelashes. "The pleasure is mine."

Her cheeks flush like her friend's dress, and the girl in question covers her laugh with her sister. Sebastian smirks deviously. Can get this one to pass out?

"SEBASTIAN!" Ciel snarls, and the butler snaps upright, "If you aren't at my side in ten seconds, I'm leaving without you!"

Sebastian rolls his eyes and smiles smugly. He knows his young master won't leave without him. "I'm afraid my master is calling me." He smiles regretfully at Marisa and kisses her hand again. "Until next time, Marisa Hawthorne." He turns from them and listens as the sisters gush and guffaw, chuckling softly to himself.

Pfft. Virgins.

Ciel glares at Sebastian as the butler takes his place behind him. "At _what_ point did it sound like I told you to pick up a prostitute?" he growls. "I'm sorry, young master" Sebastian is not sorry at all, "I just couldn't resist. Virgins are too much fun!" He opens the carriage door, and Ciel glares at him for a moment before sitting.

"I did find _something_ fairly important before I went off to enjoy myself" Sebastian defends himself as he raps a few times on the roof. "So what did you find?" Ciel presses, glaring out the window.

Sebastian reveals the fabric he plucked from the crime scene. "So, did you learn anything useful from Scotland Yard?"

"Of course not" Ciel leans back and crosses his arms, "This is Scotland Yard we're talking about."

Sebastian chuckles. "So do we go to Undertaker next?" he asks. "No" Ciel answers, "So far, no one's been killed by these fires. He'll have no reason to get involved."

"It could just be another pyromaniac" Sebastian suggests. "No" the boy muses, "The blazes are too small and controllable for that."

"What do you suggest then, young master?" he presses. Ciel is quiet for a moment. Finally he looks up at Sebastian. "It's been two days since the last attack" he says aloud, "So there will be another tonight. We're going undercover Sebastian, and you will give me the head of whoever is responsible."

Sebastian dips his head. "Yes, my lord."

...

"Do you remember the scent?" Ciel looks at Sebastian through his eyelashes. "Of course" he assures him again. Ciel pulls a scrap of paper out of his pocket and unfolds it, rereading the massage to himself again: _Corner of Cobbler and West Church._

The note had been taped to the door of the mansion when they returned. And now here they are, waiting at the street corner, as they have been for nearly two hours.

"Is this note credible?" Ciel wonders aloud, "Why would someone leave us an anonymous tip? What if this is a false lead? Or a trap?"

"I'm sure I can handle whatever situation may arise" Sebastian answers, turning his head just a bit toward Ciel, "After all, if I couldn't do that much, then what sort of butler would I be?"

Ciel turns his own head toward Sebastian. "Certainly not one worthy of serving the Phantomhives" he answers seriously. Sebastian smirks down at him.

They both jolt as the windows on the first story of a building halfway down Cobbler street blow out, before those of the second and third. A figure in a long dark cape leaps out of one of the first - story windows and races in the opposite direction of Ciel and Sebastian. "Let's go!" the boy shouts, running after the man. "All right!" his butler answers.

Sebastian is easily able to overtake Ciel and follows the escaping man around a corner. He backs up after a moment, trading blows with him. The culprit swivels out of the way of one of Sebastian's punches, scowl visible under the cowl of his cloak, and pins the hem of the butler's trench coat to the cobblestones. He races past Ciel, turning his head down at him, and runs back the way they've come. Ciel glares his teeth and runs after him, pulling his gun out. "Stay where you are!" he snarls. The strange man looks back at him and flings a small, decorative blade at the center of his head.

"Young master!" Sebastian shouts and snatches him out of the way. Ciel gasps as the blade slices through the skin of his cheek. His hand flies up to cover his wound, and his own hot blood runs though his fingers.

Sebastian launches a knife at the escaping man, pinning him by the hem of cloak to the ground. The man tugs at his cloak in and effort to get away.

Sebastian kneels next to Ciel and lowers his hand. He lays his own over the boy's other cheek. "What are you doing, Sebastian?" Ciel snaps, trying to jerk his head away, "Capture hi-!"

Sebastian kisses his cheek.

Ciel is so surprised that he can't remember to shove him off. He flinches when Sebastian sucks a little at the skin of his cheek and laves his tongue against the still - bleeding cut. He pulls away after a moment and spits out a mouthful of something white.

Oh. Right. Poison. Of course.

Sebastian stands first. Where the culprit used to be, there is only a butter knife and a scrap of cloth. "Forgive me, young master" Sebastian stares in the direction he must have run, "It seems I have let him escape."

Someone claps slowly from the direction they're staring. Sebastian shifts almost imperceptibly closer to Ciel. The someone is dressed in the same dark blue clothes as the man from before. The only thing stopping Sebastian from attacking is the not - so - subtle bulge protruding from her chest.

"Nice job" she appraises Sebastian, "Quick thinking on your part, sucking out the poison." She glances at the little white puddle. "Another couple minutes and he would've been in real trouble." She grins suddenly and points. "But if I were you, handsome, I'd try to keep from doing things like that in public too often." She brings her fingertips impishly to her lips. "If I were Scotland Yard, I probably would've taken you in."

Sebastian and Ciel exchange a glance before taking another look at the giggling stranger. A small tuft of light brown hair dangles down behind her right ear. The bodice of her dress is high - necked and long - sleeved, made of dark blue material overlaid with black lace, and very close - fitting. Her hands are covered with black gloves trimmed with equally black lace. She lowers her hand after a minute, and her eyes are very dark. She tilts her head at them in confusion, then blinks when something finally clicks in her mind. "Oh, I'm sorry" she taps her fingers against her forehead, "Where are my manners?" She curtsies to them. "Sophia Brown, at your service." She hooks the tips of her right fingers into the grooves between her left ones and tilts her head at the two men. "And just who might you be, that you run headlong at a burning building?" She raises an impudent eyebrow at Ciel and points at him as she speaks. "Especially you, boy, covered in nothing but cloth?"

"I am Earl Ciel Phantomhive" Ciel answers her imperiously. "Oh!" she curtsies to him, "It's my pleasure, Earl. Speaking of which," she rises and bends to the side a bit to ogle Sebastian, "just who might that delectable creature standing behind you be?"

Sebastian frowns at her. It's no fun if he's not the instigator.

"He is my butler, Sebastian Michaelis" Ciel glances at him. Sebastian bows shortly to her. "Huh." Sophia fiddles with the cuff of one of her gloves. "I am... Pleased to meet you" she flutters her eyelashes at him with a sleazy smirk. Sebastian raises his eyebrow at her. Is that supposed to be a come - on?

Sophia turns her head to either side. "This probably isn't the best place to talk" she thinks out loud, "Follow me, I'll take you to my house."

She turns from them and folds her hands in front of her in that strange way again. They can now see that her hair is twisted into a lopsided bun at the base of her neck. "Unless you'd rather stay out here and freeze!" she calls back to them, letting it be known that they should pick up the pace. Thinking to himself that it's not very cold out, Ciel motions for Sebastian to follow him after her.

"If you don't mind my asking, Ciel," Sophia turns her head back toward them, "Why are you dressed like that?"

Ciel frowns at her. "I am Earl Phantomhive to you, miss Brown" he orders, "And I'm undercover. You can't really expect me to wander about the slums dressed to my status, can you?"

"That makes sense" she nods, "I get pulled over all the time for dressing like this. People think I'm from the upper class or something." She turns around fully and resumes making eyes at Sebastian. "What about you, good - looking?" she asks, "Or do you not talk?"

"Not unless ordered or permitted by my master" he explains, hoping she'll take the hint. "Ooh, so devoted!" she gushes, clasping her hands. She smirks in a come - hither fashion. "I like a man a with sense of commitment."

Sebastian glowers at her, and she grins and turns to look forward again. "Are you sure this is wise, young master?" he asks him quietly, wanting very much to not be around this woman. "She doesn't seem particularly dangerous" Ciel answers, "Besides, I'm curious about what she has to say."

Sebastian sighs.

...

"Well, here we are! Home sweet home!"

Sophia opens the door to a fairly small two-story house. The first room has a fire burning in the fireplace, which Sophia immediately dashes over to. As she defrosts for no apparent reason, Ciel takes the house in.

There is a window on either side of the door, and on the eastern wall. Two armchairs are set up near the fireplace, with a small table between them. The living room and kitchen seem to be joined into one. Said kitchen contains one wood - burning stove and a table with four chairs. The eastern window has a small bouquet of pink roses in the windowsill. The western wall has a short staircase built into it.

It certainly doesn't look like the house of a pyromaniac. If anything, she looks like she could more easily be one of the victims. Still, the fact that she appeared right after they were attacked keeps Ciel on edge.

"Sit, sit" Sophia's voice cuts into his thoughts. She nods and beckons at the table. "You're guests."

Sebastian pulls Ciel's seat out for him, but doesn't sit himself. "Why don't you sit?" Sophia asks as she passes. She cranes back a bit at the waist and raises her eyebrows. "Taken a few too many pats to the behind, eh?"

Sebastian narrows his eyes at her, but swallows whatever unpleasantries he is tempted to make. "Miss Brown" Ciel says sternly enough to qualify as scolding, for which his butler is grateful. "What?" the strange woman asks, somewhat indignant, "It's a sound assumption to make."

"Perhaps for a harlot" Sebastian doesn't retort.

Sophia walks over to one of her cabinets and pulls out some tea cups. "Can I get either of you anything?" she asks, fussing over a few containers of tea leaves and coffee grounds, "Water? Tea? Coffee?" She smirks over her shoulder at Sebastian. "Something stronger for the tall, dark and handsome gentleman?"

"I'm fine, thank you" Sebastian doesn't look at her. He expects her to say something else inappropriate, but she just shrugs once and says, "Whatever you say."

"Ciel, for you?" she holds a cup out to him. "Earl Phantomhive!" he corrects sharply. She startles. "Ooh, touch - _y_."

"And no, thank you" he adds.

She sighs and puts the cup away. She apparently doesn't want any, turns back to them and raises her hands in a gesture of surrender. "All right, I'm being serious now" she says. She sits across the table from Ciel. "It wasn't a coincidence that I found you two tonight." She points at Ciel. "I'm the one who left you that note."

He gaze at her intensifies. "Why?"

"Because," - She looks back and forth, then leans in and whispers conspiratorially.

"I think I know who's behind all this."


	3. Forewarned

**XXX**

**Warning: Contains an OC being an idiot, OCs and serious violations of canon.**

**XXX**

Ciel blinks at her. She _knows_ who's doing this? "Who?" he asks skeptically.

She glances to the side and steeples her fingers in front of her mouth. "Yeah, this definitely looks like _his_ work" Ciel isn't sure if she's talking to him or to herself, "Things like this have happened a few times in Italy before. And once in Ireland, but I'm not gonna bore you with that story."

"_Who_ is behind this?" Ciel barks. He has almost been poisoned, had his cheek misleadingly kissed by his butler, and now he's having a conversation with a woman he's pretty sure may not be in her right mind tonight. Needless to say, his patience are wearing thin.

"Okay, okay, before the Queen's dog sicks itself on me" she raises her hands in a gesture of surrender. She tucks her hands back under her chin before adressing his question. "I think these fires are being set up by one Baldassare Ferro, cousin of the late great Azzuro Vanel."

"Who?"

"On the surface he runs a textile factory, but under the surface he has a hand in a few trafficking and prostitution rings, and he runs a fighting ring."

"How do you know all that?" Ciel narrows his eyes. Showing up after they get attacked, admitting to knowing about these underworld dealings; she's either incredibly stupid or... No, that's about it.

"First of all, because I myself work for Ferro" she raises two fingers, "and just about everybody knows somebody involved in the fighting ring, and by association, about the trafficking and prostitution rings."

"Why don't they say anything?" he asks. "Oh, please," she rolls her eyes, "we may not be Oxford graduates, but none of us are fool enough to cross a Mafioso."

Ciel and Sebastian exchange a glance.

"And also because I'm one of Ferro's, eh... Favorites, I guess?" she continues, "He likes me. Where d'you think I get all these nice clothes?" She tugs at her shoulders.

"So you and Ferro are close?" Ciel presses. "Yessir!" she beams, "He tells me about all these crazy things! Say, what did the guy who attacked you look like?" She rubs her chin. "Did he have a little stubble on his chin, kinda the same color as my hair?"

Ciel is confused. "Yes?"

"Vespa" she nods a few times. "What?" Ciel asks. "Vespa" she repeats, "Ferro calls him when he needs somebody killed real quick and quiet - like. Which I don't understand, since nobody's dead yet. Maybe it was just 'cause he's good at making quick getaways."

"Does he often target random buildings?" Ciel asks. "Yes and no" she answers, "This might look to you and me like random acts of violence, but Ferro always has some method to his madness. Do you know Azzuro Vanel?"

Ciel is a little thrown by her subject jump. "He kidnapped me once" he answers, "Sebastian killed him and his men."

"Ah, now it makes sense!" she sighs in relief. Ciel wonders aloud just how so.

"Why he had these fires started!" she continues delightedly and starts tracing lines on her table, "Vespa, random fires all around London, you being the queen's dog, it makes sense, don't you see? There's no_ point_ to these fires, Ferro's just trying to draw you out!"

She stands suddenly and paces back and forth in front of the table, swinging her arms all over the place. "Random, unmotivated arson cases pop up all around greater London. Scotland Yard can't figure out why. The queen sends you in to, please forgive me, sniff out the culprit. Vespa starts those fires to be on call in case you do show up. It all fits!"

"So you think I'm being targeted for revenge?"

"Probably" she smooths some of her hair back, her mania from a moment ago forgotten, "I've never really known the Ferro and Vanel families to be all that close, but family is family is family is family. And anyway, now that I think about it, maybe this is slightly business motivated. Vanel was a pretty regular supplier of ... merchandise, if ya get my meaning? You said he kidnapped you once, yeah?" She walks over to Ciel and bends into his face at the waist, her finger lifted thoughtfully to her lips. "Hmm" she mutters, "I can see why Ferro'd be upset about losing you." She lifts Ciel's chin in her hand and tilts his head to a few different angles. "Oh yeah, you'd definitely fetch a pretty penny on the market."

Sebastian snatches her wrist off of Ciel and holds it a good distance away from him, frowning at her. There is nothing even remotely close to humor in his eyes. Sophia only realizes then that she's gone too far.

"You shouldn't, miss" he says seriously. It's bothered him a lot lately if anyone besides himself touches Ciel. Probably still paranoid over the Trancy brat and that spider bastard Claude, he's decided. Although that in itself is rather odd...

"I'm sorry" Sophia shrinks a little bit into herself. Sebastian lets her wrist go and she covers it with her other hand protectively. She lowers her gaze from both of them in submission. Sebastian continues to stare down the top of her head.

"Why are you helping us?" Ciel asks the most important question he can think of. "Because," she looks up suddenly, "Ferro may be a Mafia boss with enough muscle to back up his death threats, but I am a law - abiding British citizen!" She sits up straighter and lays her hand over her heart. "And as such, it is my sovereign duty to alleviate the suffering of her majesty the Queen however possible!"

"That's my job, actually" Ciel breaks in. "Maybe" she allows, "But I'll be damned to hell and back before I let an innocent puppy put himself in this kind of danger with no help!"

Ciel gawks at her. "How dare you?" he hisses, rising angrily from his seat, "I am Earl Ciel Phantomhive, watchdog of the Queen, and you will address me as such!"

"Let's just meet in the middle and call you a guard puppy, okay?"

Sebastian chuckles quickly and disguises it as clearing his throat. Sophia notices. "See, he thinks I'm funny!" she points at Sebastian.

Actually, he'd just been surprised by her lack of shame.

"And you won't have to worry about me touching the Earl again," it takes Sebastian a minute to realize she's talking to him, "'Cause you'll probably never see me again."

"Why not?" Ciel narrows his eyes suspiciously. "Whatta you mean 'why not'?" she rolls her eyes, "Ferro an' I are close, remember? If you start showing up wherever he's setting on fire, he'll get suspicious, and didn't I say I wasn't fool enough to cross a mobster? I don't need to give him reason to suspect me."

"Wouldn't he just suspect... Vespa, was it? He's the one who's been committing the arson."

"He won't turn on Ferro for letting him have some fun. Crazy as this may sound, most people who work for Ferro actually like him.

"And it's not like I'm gonna leave you guys up the creek" she adds, "I'll leave you little clues and messages at the crime scenes. Of course, they'll never be easy to spot. I'm not going stick my neck out that for strangers, queen's dog or not. They'll all smell like this, though."

She walks to a small drawer in the sitting room and pulls out a plain handkerchief, then to another and takes out a small perfume bottle. She squirts it a few times and nothing happens. She glares at it as a few feeble drips shoot out, then turns it back to the cloth and sprays it a few times. She walks back to Ciel and Sebastian and hands it to the young count. He sniffs it for a minute before handing it over to his butler. It smells kind of sugary. "Keep your noses peeled, and you'll at least be in step" she winks and taps the side of her nose with a grin.

"And now, I think you should be going" she says, rising from her seat. She turns into the living room with Sebastian and Ciel in tow. She steers clear of the butler as she stokes the fire. The two males start toward the door before Sebastian looks back.

"Aren't you going to see us out?" he asks. After her behavior, he thinks it's the least she can do.

"Um... I can't" she rubs the back of her neck in embarrassment. Ciel raises an eyebrow at her. "I know this is gonna sound like a lame excuse, I'm really sensitive to cold."

She's right; it does sound like a lame excuse.

"The temperature when I went to meet you is about all I can stand." She walks over to them and lightly grabs Sebastian's wrist. "If I stand outside for more than ten minutes, my skin turns chalk - white and starts flaking off in chunks the size of your hand." She gives his wrist a gentle shake and shudders. "It ain't pretty" she looks away, the smiles sluttishly at Sebastian. "Of course, you'd know nothing about that, right?"

He frowns and pulls his hand out of her grip. "Good night, miss Brown."

"Sleep tight!" she waves as they leave.

...

The twosome exchange a glance once they're can practically feel the crazy dispersing. "Idiot" Ciel mutters, "She reminds me something of Trancy."

"I was thinking the same, young master" Sebastian answers, "Do you really think it's wise to take her word in this situation? It seems a bit questionable to me whether she is entirely trustworthy. Or even entirely sane."

"I'll accept her help for now" Ciel decides, starting in the direction they'd followed their odd hostess, "But if she proves to be useless, or if she acts in such an irritating manner again, you are free to take whatever action you think necessary."

"Understood."

Somebody starts banging frantically on a window behind them. They turn back to see that it is Sophia. She narrows her eyes at them and breathes on the windowpane. Once a thick enough fog has built up, she sticks her fingertip into it and writes "I HEARD THAT!" in capital letters, then adds two underlines. She wipes it away and glowers once at Ciel before tugging her lower eyelids down and sticking her tongue out at him. She narrows her eyes once more and yanks the curtains shut.

Ciel and Sebastian stare at it for a minute, then Ciel turns to the butler.

"I said she was an idiot, right?"

...

True to her word, there is a small note waiting for them at the next crime scene they visit, this time not only containing the location of the next case, but the time the attack with occur. Once again, Vespa is there to kill Ciel, and again, he fails and flees before Sebastian can capture or kill him.

This continues for nearly a month.

Ciel is not just frustrated anymore. He is furious.

...

Ciel reads the latest report on the arson case pilfered from Scotland Yard and slams it down on his desk with a snarl. "This has gone on long enough!" he declares, clenching his tiny fists, "There's no reason for things to be dragging this way!"

"Perhaps our informant is a double agent after all?" Sebastian suggests. He cuts a slice of pear tart and places it in front of Ciel, along with a cup of Earl Grey tea. "If that's the case" Ciel decides, cutting off a small section of the tart and bringing it to his lips, "Then you know what needs to be done."

"Yes, my lord."

Ciel bites into the tart.

...

Sebastian and Ciel swivel their heads up and down the street as they wait for the next attack to occur. Someone starts poking relentlessly into Ciel's back. He turns his head, annoyed, and blanches.

The woman standing behind them is dressed in a dark blue dress decorated with black lace and a dark blue hat with a black ribbon, flower and feather sticking out of said flower, a black scarf pulled over her nose and mouth, and bandages over her right eye. Her hands are covered by lace - edged black gloves, and a black cloak is wrapped tightly around her shoulders.

"Sophia!" Ciel accuses. She lifts a finger to her covered lips and hisses for silence. She turns her head back and forth rapidly, as if expecting someone to jump out, then turns her attention back to them and motions animatedly for them to follow her. "What about the attack?" Ciel hisses. She groans loudly, turns back and grabs his forearm. She tugs him forward a few steps and starts half - running away from them. Ciel jerks his head in her direction and he and Sebastian follow.

...

Sophia unlocks the door hastily as beckons the men inside. She yanks Sebastian the last couple steps through the door, slams it behind him, and shoves her way past them to the fireplace. She huddles in front of it for a minute and blows into her hands before she stands and takes off her hat and cloak, her back still turned to them both. The upper right of her head is wrapped in gauze, which she starts to unwind. Ciel starts to interrogate her as she does so: "Why have you brought us back here? Why has Vespa been able to get away from us every time? Are you warning Ferro that we know where he'll strike next? If you're double - crossing me - !" He pulls out his gun and cocks it. She turns her un - bandaged eye toward him. He is surprised by how emotionless she looks. "Put that away" she turns her head away from him and continues unwinding the gauze "You'll blow your eye out." The bindings fall away and she turns her right eye toward them.

Her right temple is covered by an ugly crescent of bruises that are starting to turn green and yellow at the edges. The right half of her sclera is bright red.

"What happened to you?" Ciel asks, surprised. Sophia is probably an idiot to some degree, yes, but she doesn't seem like the type to go looking for fights where you can get hurt like that.

"Ferro found out I was your mole and tried to deepen my eye socket, that's what happened" she points at said beating, "Damn near came close to it, too." She pokes at the mark and winces a little. "Ferro's practically put me under house arrest!" she raves, "I've got somebody watching me literally over my shoulder the whole time I'm at work, and I have to be escorted to and from my house!" She stalks over to the window and peeks through the drawn curtain. "I wouldn't be surprised if he's got Serpe watching me right now!"

"So you've brought us here to call this arrangement off?" Sebastian guesses. "Fraid not" she answers, returning to the fireplace and retying the bandages around her eye, "Regardless of threats to my safety, I'm a British citizen, and therefore obligated to help the Queen and her guard puppy to the best of my ability."

"Stop calling me that!" Ciel growls. "But it fits you so well!" Sophia protests. They both frown at her. "Okay, okay, fine" she surrenders, "If you ever see me again, I promise I won't call you 'guard puppy'. Now, I don't know about you two, but I'm still cold. I'm gonna go put some tea on. You want any?"

"Yes" Ciel nods. Sebastian politely declines. Sophia gives him a look, probably wondering if he ever eats, and turns into the kitchen.

A window shatters in the kitchen, and Sophia screams bloody murder. Sebastian shoves Ciel behind him and pulls out a set of knives. Vespa and three others have suddenly appeared, one of whom is holding Sophia at knifepoint. "CIEL!" she screams louder than is probably necessary. One of the invaders that isn't Vespa lunges at Sebastian, who blocks his attack and throws him hard against a wall. He doesn't notice Vespa and one of the others sneak up behind him and tie his arms with some sort of wire. Sebastian tugs at the wire and his wrists start to bleed. "Young master, get out of here!" he orders, and the man that isn't Vespa slams a pipe down on his head. Sebastian crumples on the floor.

Ciel stares from them to his butler and back in shock. No one who isn't a demon has ever been able to overpower Sebastian. The men start to come at him, both brandishing small daggers.

Sophia jumps in front of him, holding a serrated knife in each hand. It makes sense to Ciel that she knows how to handle a weapon, seeing as how she lives alone. "Ciel, what are you doing? Run for your life!"

"Of course not!" Ciel protests and draws his gun. One of the men throws a small, serrated disk at Sophia. She hisses as it slices through her sleeve and nicks her skin. "I wasn't asking!" she snaps at him, squeezing her cut, "Now go!"

To ensure that he follows her advice, she grabs his shoulder and all but throws him out the door, then slams it in his face. Knows that they won't pay attention to Sebastian if he plays dead, he turns and runs, leaving it to Sebastian to sneak out when he can.

He hears the door open behind him.

"Take him down, Fenice!"

"CIEEEL!"

Ciel turns to shoot. He jerks to a stop as something small and icy - hot embeds itself in the inside of his bicep. Almost immediately his vision begins to blur. He feels his legs give out from under him.

"Se-"

_Thud._

...

Fenice strides up to his unconscious body, her hood pulled low over her eyes. She tugs the dart out of Ciel's arm, repockets it and slings him over her shoulder. "Leave the butler" she instructs the group once she rejoins them, "We got what we came for." She hands Ciel over to Vespa. "Take him and go" she glares at the unconscious heap of Sebastian on the floor.

The rest of the group leaves. Sebastian groans roughly with twitching eyelids, and Fenice arches an eyebrow. He survived getting his head bashed in with a piece of pipe? "Che!" she hisses, inexplicably angry. She kicks him hard enough in the temple to flip him from his side to his back and proceeds to stomp on his chest and stomach, and even to kick a few times at his jaw. When a particularly hard stomp forces blood from between his lips, she stops and allows herself a dark chortle, then kneels next to him and binds his wrists and ankles together behind his back with a length of piano wire she always carries. You never know when you might need a garrote.

She pats his cheek and smiles an arsenic - and - sugar smile. "Sleep tight" she coos into his ear.

She tucks a strand of hair behind his ear and runs after the group.


	4. Ultimatum

**A/N:** I wanted to write this too much.

* * *

><p><strong>XXX<strong>

**Warning: Contains sadism, torture, child abuse, Grell, one - sided Grell/Sebastian, non - consensual touching, OCs, possible OOC - ness and violation of canon.**

**XXX**

_"It's smooth, but... It's cold and hard. It doesn't feel good. Something smells strange, too. Musty... Like something rotting. It's sweet, but... I don't like it._

_Where am I?"_

Ciel's eyes open slowly and blink a few times. He sits up quickly, panicking, as he realizes where he is.

He is in a large, ovular stone room lined with spectators' seats. There are about five breaks between them across the room, with doorways built into them.

There is an altar in the center of this room.

He is in a cage. There is a chain around his ankle.

_"What? No! They couldn't have-! They're dead!"_

His breath picks up speed. The cage seems to have a lock at the bottom. He makes a few desperate noises as he tries to claw it open.

_"No! NO! Please, not again! Somebody! Someone, help me! Father! Mother! Sebastian!"_

_SSSSSSHIK._

He gasps and turns his head toward the noise very slowly. A man dressed in a hideously familiar white robe and mask is sharpening a long, evil dagger. He grins and chuckles at Ciel, wiggling the knife at him. It gleams in the torchlight as if possessed.

Ciel gasps loudly and whimpers. He shrinks as far as he can into a corner of his cage, shaking so hard he can barely breathe straight.

_"Sebastian, I'm here! Save me!_

_... Oh no. The contract. He can't find me._

_I'm alone."_

"SEBASTIAN!"

...

Fenice walks in dressed in a similarly white robe and mask a few seconds afterword. She raises her eyebrow at the still - screaming, panic - stricken boy for a few seconds before throwing another dart at him. It hits him in the neck. He is awake long enough to scratch at it, and then he hits the ground before it does. Good thing too; he would've been impaled in the neck otherwise. Vespa raises his eyebrows behind his mask and looks up at his friend.

"That was a surprise" he remarks. "That was a headache in the making is what that was" she counters. Vespa chuckles.

Fenice continues to stare at Ciel for a few more seconds. "I'm bored now," she suddenly declares. She turns on her heel, making the white cloak billow around her.

Vespa cocks his eyebrow at her. "Want me to call ya back when he wakes up?"

Fenice gazes over her shoulder at Ciel for a few seconds. "Yeah" she decides. She shuts the door behind her as she leaves. Vespa turns his attention back to his knife.

...

_"How embarrassing; I feel asleep during a fight. Agh! Dammit, my head hurts. That blow would probably have killed a human. Actually, my whole body feels rather sore. What happened after I fell asleep? Was I attacked? And what's that around my wrists, piano wire?"_

"Hiii, Sebby."

_"Well, that answers that question."_

"Grell Sutcliff."

The redhead in question is lying on his side next to him, and WAY too close for comfort.

"I had some souls to collect near here, and then fate led me to my beloved Sebby, all wrapped up in shiny silver for me and decorated with all this pretty blood!" He twirls excitedly with his hands clasped. "The universe has predestined for us to be together, Sebby!"

He's not chained, or naked, or bleeding, or anything else he expected. For a minute he considers asking Grell if he's sick, but then thinks better of it. Why look a gift horse in the mouth?

Grell sighs and slides back up to Sebastian. "Ah, Sebby's sleeping face is so lovely. Such soft hair..." He reaches over and pinches a few strands of Sebastian's bangs between his fingers.

The demon flips Grell over him and onto his back with the heel of his foot. "Please don't touch me without my consent" he says. He gets to his feet and wriggles his wrists out of the wire. Grell sits up quickly beside him, crying dramatically. "WAAAH! Sebby, you're so mean! You're almost as bad as that brat master of yours! Eh? Sebby?"

Sebastian ignores him and inhales deeply through his nose. It's difficult to pick up on any human scents over that God - awful perfume Grell's wearing in such a tiny space, but he does pick up a few scents:

Vespa. Sophia. Two unknown men and one woman. His young master.

His young master's blood.

Sebastian's eyes widen as his nostrils flare. He hasn't lost enough blood to kill him, or even really hurt him, but the fact that someone has made his young master bleed infuriates him.

Grell whimpers nervously as a dark, greenish shadow flares up behind the butler.

Sebastian swivels his head around, trying to hone in on his young master's scent. His eyes flash pink as he zeros in on it and bolts out the door. Grell yells after him and he hears footsteps.

"AAAAH! Wait, Sebby!"

_"Be strong, young master. I'm coming for you."_

...

Fenice is frustrated.

She's been at this for a short while, fifteen minutes maybe, but the kid's been pretty good at keeping quiet. Oh well. If at first you don't succeed...

Whip, whip again.

_Crack!_

*gasp*

She's surprised at her temper.

_Crack!_

"AH!"

He hasn't done anything wrong.

_Crack!_

"AGH!"

He doesn't even have anything to do with this, not really.

_Crack!_

"SEBASTIAN!"

It's just... Hearing him say that bastard's _name_...

_CRACK CRACK!_

"YAAH! "

She halts her beating mid - lash when Ciel stops straining against his chains and lies heavily against the wall. His back bleeds more whenever he inhales.

She stares owlishly at his back. She's no expert on human anatomy, but she's fairly certain that you're not supposed to hit something white when you cut someone.

She walks up to him slowly, waiting for it to bleed. Some red beads on it here and there, but nothing more. She pokes at it curiously to confirm or counter her suspicion. It apparently hurts him horribly, and she jerks away. Still, she managed to learn that she was wrong. Bone doesn't give like whatever she poked.

Fenice abandons her whip and unlocks Ciel's chains. He allows himself to be dragged to the other side of the room and thrown back into his cage. Fenice watches detachedly as he curls into a little shivering ball on the ground, staring at nothing in terror. She looks around for a minute and walks over to Ciel's abandoned white shirt, stripped off before the beating. She throws it in his general direction into the cage. "Put your shirt back on" she says in a tone edged with disdain. She slams the cage shut and turns on her heel without a backward glance. She slams the door behind her when she leaves, and the poor boy is alone.

Mechanically, shaking like a leaf, he curls his fingers around the shirt and huddles into it. The entire back of his body burns dully as he does so.

"Sebastian... Someone... Please... Help."

He knows no one is coming.

...

Sebastian lands in a crouch on the roof of the building. The scent of his young master's blood is strong here. He narrows his eyes. Whoever spilt that boy's blood is somewhere in there.

Grell lands next to him and sags against his shoulder. "Ah, Sebby!" he gasps, "Why did you drag me all the way out here?"

"You dragged yourself out here" Sebastian reminds him. He jumps over the side of the building and digs a few knives and forks into the side, lets himself fall about two stories, then swings in through the nearest window. Grell lands beside him as he tucks the utensils back into his coat. His eyes widen at the sound of approaching footsteps, and he ducks behind a corner with Grell. He clamps a hand over the redhead's mouth at his protesting yelp. It's more bitter than sweet for the butler when Grell sighs happily and leans back into his chest.

"Haven't seen her in a couple hours" one man comments. Sebastian immediately knows that he's not one of the men that attacked them. "Last time I did she was headed down to the dungeon with some passed - out kid."

"Maybe that's how she gets her rocks off?" a new voice suggests. Sebastian rolls his eyes disdainfully. His master is in _this_ kind of company?

"I always though she had Vespa to take care of that" the first man retorts. They guffaw a bit loudly over his comment and pass without noticing the demon and reaper. "Well, that was interesting" Sebastian mutters to himself. Vespa he remembers, but who is this woman they're talking about? More importantly, what has she been doing to his young master?

"Ahhh!" Grell moans, leaning back farther into Sebastian's chest somehow, "Sebby, you can't stand so close!"

"My apologies" the demon smiles and shoves him into the floor. He sniffs a few times, and finds his yo -

His breath catches in his throat. His young master is bleeding. Badly.

He races in the direction of the smell, ignoring the effeminate reaper's cries of "Wait for meeee!"

...

He follows the scent down a hallway to a door that opens to a spiraling stone staircase. He sighs a sigh that is more of a snarl and starts down it. He hates these things; all they're good for is waisting his time. Still, he supposes that to a human it might serve as a decent intimidation tactic. Not to mention they can be exhausting to climb up.

There is a single door at the base of the staircase, which opens into what certainly looks like a dungeon. The walls are lined with wooden doors reinforced at the top and bottom with iron rivulets. He swivels his head to pick up his master's scent again. Down the right. His eyes narrow as he runs toward it.

He ends up at a single door where the blood scent is so strong he can almost taste it. He throws it open.

"Young master!"

He gawks.

He is in an amphitheater much like the one wherein he first met his young charge. Even the altar is very similar in design.

Ciel is curled into a ball on the floor of a metal cage with his shirt draped over him. He is shivering violently and his eyes are wide and horrified. Sebastian can see the streaks of dried tears on his cheeks even at this distance. Sebastian doubts the young Earl has noticed his entry.

The demon takes a step closer. The boy doesn't react. Sebastian rushes up to him and opens the cage. "Young master!" he reaches for him.

He blinks as a metallic throwing star splits the end of a strand of his bangs and embeds itself into a crack between the floor stones. Ciel whimpers and buries his face in his knees. No human would have noticed the little dent that rises slowly in the child's neck where the edge poked him. It's been a long time since he's seen anyone who could do that.

He turns over his shoulder and then frowns. A woman dressed in a long white cloak and flaring white mask is standing on the ledge of the spectators' seats, holding two more throwing stars between her second, third and forth gloved fingers. Her hair is braided down to the center of her back. Her mouth is turned downward. He can't see her eyes very clearly.

"The next one won't miss" she doesn't - just - threaten him. Sebastian draws a set of knives in response. The woman pockets her projectiles, hops off the ledge and pulls a black - handled bowie knife out of a sheath strapped to her thigh, which she swings in a dramatic arc and points at the butler. "Ladies first" she tilts her head. She screams in a way that reminds Sebastian of an angry animal as she runs at him, directly in line with the altar. She places her hand on the edge and vaults over it, leg extended to kick Sebastian on the crown of his head. He backs out of her way and ducks to cut her legs out from under her. She jumps over his knives and steps on his head to jump over him, but he catches the hem of her white cloak, unbalancing her momentarily. She allows herself to be pulled back at first, then twists borderline unnaturally, like a snake on a vine, and jams her knife bone - deep into Sebastian's calf.

His eyes almost bulge out of his head at the pain and he locks his teeth together to keep from screaming. She yanks it to the side, and the splash of blood makes her blink. He goes down on one knee and drops her. She lands on one hand, flips right - side - up and lands in a crouch, supported by one arm, and flips her knife around in her hand with a loud exhale.

Sebastian is still down on one knee. It's been a while since he's been cut so deeply, and it burns like hellfire. Luckily for him the pain passes quickly, then the bleeding peters out and he gets back to his feet, shakily at first. One very pleasant side effect of soul consumption is accelerated healing.

The woman straightens, too, and raises her eyebrow. First he survived having his head bashed in, then having his torso trampled, and now this?

"What _are_ you?" she demands, sounding more annoyed than frightened.

"Hmm?" He cranes his head back to look at her with an expression that could be called aloof.

"You shouldn't be able to get up" she gestures with her knife. He smirks at her over his shoulder. "As the butler of Phantomhive, what would I do if I couldn't recover from one stab wound?"

"That wasn't a _stab wound_," she sounds insulted, "that was me probably deveining your entire left calf. People don't get up after that!"

"Well, I do" Sebastian remarks. She seems to consider that for a minute the shrugs. "Well, you know what they say" she says, "Either violence never solves anything..." - she resumes a fighting stance and bares her teeth - "or you're not hitting hard enough!"

She dives at him with another snarl, and manages to beat him back a few steps - because of his torn calf, he reasons. She swings her arm down to cut across his chest. He catches her knife between two of his. He is not expecting her to pull her knife apart and stab at his sternum. He dodges her with a spin and tries to cut a few lines into her cheek. She blocks his attack and snarls in a rage, and stabs in an uppercut at his stomach. He is easily able to knock her hand aside, and she takes the opportunity to stab at his heart again. He catches her knife again and they hold each others respectively angry and determined glares for a moment. _"She's strong"_ he muses, _"I haven't fought such a vicious human since the competition for the royal warrant."_ He knocks aside a blow to his thigh that would likely be devastating. _"And this one isn't under the effects of any drugs."_

She charges at him again, arms spread too far to protect her face. He swings his forgotten other arm and cuts her across the bridge of her nose and part of both her cheeks. She jumps back with a startled cry and covers her wound for a moment before turning her attention back to him with a growl. Sebastian has tried to seize the opportunity to grab his young master and run.

He gets close enough to put his hand on the bar -

The woman grabs at his tie and yanks it back in an impromptu garrote, placing her foot on a bar for leverage. She glares into Sebastian's disapproving face.

"I never pegged you as the type to hide behind a mask" he remarks. The woman offers him a small sneer. "Smart, pretty _and_ talented" she shakes her head. She plants the heel of her hand in his sternum and swings him around, away from the cage. He lowers into a crouch briefly, then stands.

Sophia lifts her mask off and throws it aside, along with her cape.

"I guess some of us are just born lucky" she shrugs.

Sophia's conservative style of dressing suddenly makes a lot of sense. Her arms are covered with both old scars and fresh scabs, as are what he can see of her thighs. Most of her legs are covered by thigh - high black boots with high, wide heels. The rest of her is dressed in a sleeveless dark blue leotard with a thick grayish - olive colored stripe that runs from under each arm to the top of each thigh. Her collar stops just at the base of her neck, revealing a pale, diagonal scar across half of the front of her throat. She pulls her lacy white gloves off to reveal long nails manicured to curved, deadly points, like cat claws. There is a gold band on her left ring finger.

"And _don't_ get any funny ideas," she warns him. She grabs Ciel's bicep and pulls him against her chest. "Because _you're_ not the one who'll suffer for them."

"Release my young master" Sebastian orders her seriously. She narrows her eyes coldly at him. "You're in _no_ position to go making demands."

She runs her thumbnail across her young captive's neck. A thin line of red appears in its wake. Ciel tenses and whines, and a few tears ooze down his cheeks. Sebastian blinks. Upon closer inspection, he notices that her nails are chipped, or perhaps cut intentionally, in such a way that they catch and rip on anything when pulled back. He is reminded of shark teeth.

Sophia has been watching him watching her and decided that he's worried about Ciel. "Oh, would you calm down?" she says impatiently, "It's a shallow cut. Probably won't even scar."

"Is that so?" Sebastian smirks.

"Don't look so excited" she scolds him, "It's not the first time I've passed up the chance to kill the kid."

"What?"

_"Hook, line, and sinker,"_ her lips curve up in a smirk. She shifts Ciel a little in her arms and lifts his shirt, just barely revealing the lashes cut into the back of his torso and legs. "Surprise" she singsongs.

Sebastian flings a set of knives at her. She ducks ungainly out of the way and watches them bury into the viewing stands. "Strange" she remarks, "I pegged you as the sort who'd be into BDSM."

Sebastian frowns and throws another few knives at Fenice's face. She frowns herself and lifts Ciel's arm into their path. He screams as the knives bury themselves in his skin. Sebastian glares at her. So she wasn't bluffing.

"I _warned_ you not try anything, didn't I?" she asks, annoyed, and plucks the cutlery out of Ciel's arm before stroking his head soothingly, "Next time it'll be something a little more important than an arm, got it?" She looks down speculatively at Ciel and tilts his head up. "Although it _would_ be a shame to ruin such a cute face."

"So this is what you wanted my young master for" Sebastian guesses. "Oh, please," Fenice rolls her eyes, "what would we want with some brat who probably can't even tie his own shoes? It's _you_ we were after."

"Why me?"

"Gee, I dunno" she taps her lower lip sardonically, "Why _would_ we want a guy that can singlehandedly take down a small army with silverware?"

"Then why involve my young master?"

"This is just how Mr. Ferro recruits" she shrugs and pets Ciel's hair, "He makes sure the intended employee has nowhere to go but here. No one really _wants_ to be alone."

"Is that how you got here?"

"No, I was willing" she smiles, "How could I say no to getting paid to do what I love?"

Sebastian frowns at her. How human.

"But I _do_ have a personal reason for this" she admits while plucking at Ciel's scalp. Sebastian rolls his eyes. She frowns at the butler. "You remember Azzurro Vanel, don't you?"

"I see."

"Do you?" she raises an eyebrow, "Well, you probably see wrong, but I guess it doesn't matter." She starts petting the top of Ciel's head. "What does matter is that you killed somebody I loved, so revenge is mine to take by right." She scrapes her other four fingers across Ciel's throat. He squeaks. Sebastian tenses. She raises her eyebrows and presses harder on Ciel's neck. Her nails are very sharp. She could probably poke them through his neck if she wanted to.

For anybody wondering why Sebastian isn't just jamming a spoon into her head and going on his way, she's backed up against a cage which is pressed up against a solid stone wall right now, _and_ she has Ciel as a shield. As for why he couldn't just take Ciel down with her and perform the concentration ritual again, that is out of the question for too many reasons to go into right now. And even if it wasn't out of the question for too many reason to go into right now, concentration rituals are strictly one time deals, and the ritual has to be performed immediately after death, within three hours at most. By then, the corpse has already been stricken with rigor mortis and begun the first early stages of decay. Not a deal - breaker itself, but an immense annoyance to reverse nonetheless. Secondly, by that time, the soul will have been digested to a point where it's barely a soul anymore and the demon's body will have begun converting it into energy, rendering it almost totally useless.

"What's going on here?"

A very golden man dressed in a white suit, mask and robe and black shoes has appeared behind them. He hands are folded over a cane topped with a crystal the size of a peach.

"Mr. Ferro" Fenice dips her head to him, "I was just explaining your prospect's situation to him." She smiles poisonously at Sebastian. "I think he understands."

He frowns at her.

"So, what do you say?" Ferro asks, "Will you stay with us..."

"Or am I gonna have to make an example of dear Ciel here?" Fenice slips her index fingernail into the cut on Ciel's throat, and he whimpers in terror as a few more tears stream down his cheeks.

Sebastian's eyes swivel in their sockets from Fenice to his young master to Ferro and back again. He would kill them both, if not for the fact that the girl holding his young master hostage can keep up with a demon in a fight. And that she's teetering on the edge of killing him as he thinks.

He hangs his head and raises a hand in surrender. "I'll stay" he answers.

"Very good" Ferro nods. Vespa appears at his side. He looks a lot like Fenice. "Vespa, see if you can't find our knew employee a free room, would you?"

"Yes, sir" he bows and turns. He gestures with his head for Sebastian to follow him. "Fenice," Ferro continues, "you will continue to... Look after the boy, yes?"

"Yes, sir" she nods.

"Please come with us" Ferro turns away from the spectacle. Sebastian glares at Fenice as he passes her. She smiles smugly at him in silent reply.

Sebastian's eyes flash dangerously as he follows Ferro and Vespa. A cage door slams shut. Sebastian clenches his fist.

_"Don't despair, young master. I_ will _get you out of here."_

_..._

Sebastian's promise goes unfulfilled for nearly a month.

Sebastian Michaelis, or "Cavaliere" as he's now known, is very grateful that his new job allows him to hurt things. It's probably the only thing keeping him sane at this point.

Fenice has stopped coming to fights, or at least participating in them. She is always in the stands, watching as he takes down some nameless dreg. She always nods at his glares, as if approving his performance.

And always, _always_, she has his young master at her side or in her lap, wrapped in her black cloak.

The two of them are never apart. She even feeds him from her plate at meals. That's what he hears, anyway; He doesn't come down to eat. Unfortunately, he can't avoid the fights, or the fact that she sits with his young master through all of them, patting his head and speaking to him in what he can hear are hushed tones. He'd tear his arm off again himself to throw a knife at her when he sees that, if it weren't for the fact that A, she would just pull his young master in front of her, and B, he won't let himself fall for her baiting.

Also, he's not entirely convinced it's a coincidence that Vespa gave him a room directly below the amphitheater wherein Fenice tortures his young master every night. His screaming always stops fairly quickly, but he can hear all of it.

And it enrages him. He hates her for dangling his own powerlessness in front of him like this. It's too familiar.

For everybody wondering why he doesn't just break through the ceiling, kill her, take him and run, there's a lot of reasons: first, he always hears a distinct lack of whiplashes, meaning she's armed and close to his master at all times. Second, Fenice is one of the few humans that can and does use their whole body as a weapon. It really is much harder than it sounds and looks; In humans, it involves almost total shutdown of the conscious mind and tapping into memories and instincts that date back to the earliest hominids. Most humans don't even know they know how to fight like that, and even if they do, it's more than slightly disconcerting to them to all but black out and have someone bleeding at their feet when they come around. If he held her in any sort of regard, he might compare her trance - like state to Agni's Samadi. Because he doesn't, he equates it to the Viking Berserkers.

So he waits. Because without a King to guide him, what else can the Knight do?

...

"Here." Ferro hands him a stack of paper money three inches thick. Sebastian's eyebrow rises. "What's this?"

"Your piece for the night" Ferro explains, "This is the only home my employees have. The least I can do is make their stay pleasant for them."

Sebastian eyes the money suspiciously. It's not like it can kill him or anything, but still, this is strange.

"There's about five thousand pounds there" Ferro assumes what he's thinking about, "Each employee gets half the money bet on them every night. You're my highest - grossing employee since Fenice, you know."

"I'm flattered" Sebastian pockets the money. Maybe burning something will help calm him down. "I usually pay new employees after the first week" Ferro shrugs, "I would've paid you sooner, but something came up. You understand, right?"

"Of course" he turns from the man, "I'll be in my quarters." Ferro doesn't question whether he'll be down for dinner. Most people have gotten used to the fact that Cavaliere doesn't eat by now.

...

Fenice is lying in wait for him two floors down. Fabulous.

"Evening" she says to him. Sebastian walks past her without noticing the dark circles under his young master's expressionless eyes, his sunken cheeks, or how thin and sallow his skin looks.

No, he doesn't notice at all.

"I said _evening_" she repeats emphatically, hugging Ciel a little tighter to her chest. Her black cloak falls a little further over his shoulder. Sebastian continues to ignore her.

She frowns. "What a rude way to treat a lady!" She plucks delicately at Ciel's scalp. "You're setting a terrible example for the kid."

Sebastian stops. "Despite what may you think, I iwill/i catch you without my young master" he promises.

She laughs a deeper version of Alois Trancy's laugh. "You _really_ think it's gonna be that easy? Kill me, take the kid and run, and everything's just gonna go back to being normal again?"

He turns toward her, suspicious. "What are you talking about?"

She tilts her head back toward him, not smiling anymore. "Are you blind or just stupid? Do you _not_ see where you are? Ferro pays us top dollar to beat each other bloody, our lives don't _mean_ anything to him. Yeah, he may be a little annoyed if you kill a few of us off, loss of profits and whatnot, but it's not going to change your situation; Ferro'll still want you, and Ciel and Funtom company are still gonna be in the way of that. Let's say, hypothetically, you _are_ able to slit my throat, - _"You overestimate my mercy"_ Sebastian thinks darkly - "you steal your pet back, -"

"He is not my pet" Sebastian interrupts. He can't stand hearing someone talk about his master that way. Which he decides is because he hates thinking of himself as lower than an animal.

"And you get back home to the kid's mansion" Fenice finishes, "I know what'll happen after that, 'cause I've seen it happen before. Ferro'll buy out all of Funtom's major fabric suppliers, and maybe the sugar and spice suppliers, too." 'Dead' doesn't even begin to cover how seriously she looks at him. "Believe me, he can do that. Anyway, Ciel'll either be forced to sell his company or file for bankruptcy. Once that's out of the way, Ferro'll come after _him_. He may decide to kill him, or we could just end up in _this"_ - She strokes the vein in Ciel's neck with her nail tip - "situation again."

It's a little devastating to Sebastian to watch Ciel not react to her touch. He'd prefer his young master's terrified face of the first week to this lifeless thing in Fenice's arms now.

"Either way," she adds unnecessarily, "you try to run off after killing me, you'll only make things worse for yourself in the long run. I'm just trying to warn you. You wanna go off and do something stupid, that's fine, but don't forget that _other_ people" - she squeezes Ciel quickly - "are gonna be hit harder by the backlash than you are."

As she swings Ciel up into her arms, she curls her fingers around his neck. Sebastian quickly runs through that scenario in his mind: He stabs his hand through her back, she clenches her fist in her last conscious moment, and his young master drowns in his own blood. He turns and storms away from them without making a Sound.

Sophia walks a few steps in the other direction before sneering over her shoulder not enough to notice that Sebastian is gone. "Will we be seeing you at dinner?" she asks.

She looks down the deserted hallway. A door slams somewhere in the distance.

"Guess not" she shrugs, leering, and turns her tenderized smile back to Ciel. "C'mon, pet" she says gently, "Let's go get you some food. We need to keep your strength up, yeah?"

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Just to clarify: Baldassare Ferro really was looking to hire Sebastian. Fenice just worked herself into the mix so that she could make him sweat a little. She was engaged, not married, and not to Azzurro Vanel, just to one of his goons, specifically the blonde one that said they needed reinforcements.

... What? I'm not allowed to pair my OCs up with nameless hired guns? Nameless hired guns need love too, you know.


	5. Searching

**A/N:** Guardian of the Forth Wall, thanks for the reviews :3

* * *

><p><strong>XXX<strong>

**Warning: Contains servants, East Indians, OCs, possible OOC - ness and violations of canon.**

**XXX**

Sebastian stares up at his ceiling, one arm tucked under his head, hoping irrationally that it will Sophia will drop dead. He doesn't worry about being interrupted in his glaring. Most humans have an instinct to avoid things that will kill them.

They've been here for nearly a month now. He'd gotten tired of sitting around waiting and gone to retrieve his master one night after Sophia had finished torturing them both - he really doesn't like to think on how her efforts to psych him out through his master work like a charm.

He really didn't know why he'd expected otherwise, but Fenice had been asleep in the cage with his master in her arms, pressing her knives against his throat and stomach. He had to admit, even he was amazed at how light a sleeper she is; His frustrated growl at his discovery had set her peering suspiciously out of the cage, holding Ciel fast against her chest. She hadn't seen him, he was sure, but she'd nevertheless slit Ciel's throat again in warning and spent the next fifteen minutes sticking hot needles into his arms.

He comforts himself with the though that even roaches like her don't live forever, but it doesn't work as well as he'd like.

The total silence that follows the torture sessions aren't quite relaxing, but -

_Wait a minute..._

He blinks in surprise and cocks his head. He checks again...

No. He _wasn't_ wrong. That little bit of normalcy is comforting.

His old "I know something you don't know" smile curls across his lips.

"Interesting..."

...

Finny sighs sadly and gazes at the manor door. The others always send him outside when detective Aberline shows up, and garden's needed to be weeded a little bit anyway.

Aberline exits, offers him a quick glance of sympathy, then gets into his buggy. Finny abandons his tools and goes back into the house. He suddenly doesn't want to be alone.

...

He finds everyone gathered in the kitchen. The mansion hasn't quite fallen into disrepair since Sebastian and Ciel have disappeared, but it isn't quite as polished as it normally looks. They've all at least _tried_ to keep things neat. Heaven knows Sebastian'll have a fit if he and the young master come back to a destroyed house.

"Anything?" Finny asks his friends. They called on the Yard when Ciel and Sebastian didn't come home for two weeks. That was almost two weeks ago.

Bard shakes his head. Mister Tanaka sighs morosely and just stares at his tea rather than sip it. Maylene looks worriedly out the window, watching Aberline leave. "It's been so long" she says unhappily, touching the glass, "I hope nothing's happened to the young master, or to Mr. Sebastian."

"Ah, Sebastian can take care of them both" Bard takes the cigarette out of his mouth and waves his hand dismissively. Truth be known, he's just as afraid for them, but somebody has to keep some kind of hold on themselves here.

Finny leans his head on Maylene's shoulder. Soma walks in a little after, Agni at his side, and sinks heavily into a chair, burying his face in his folded arms. "Anything?" Maylene presses. "No" Soma's head bounces as he delivers his muffled report. Even Agni can't be his usual cheerful self not knowing if his friends are alive or lying dead somewhere.

Elizabeth and Paula are following in their wake. Ciel's fiancee checks in for updates n his whereabouts a few times a week. "Any word on them from Aberline?"

Soma shakes his head without looking up. Elizabeth sighs sadly and sits beside him. He does look up then and rubs her back in an attempt to comfort her.

"All right, that's _it_!" Bard slams his hand on the table and jumps up, "What the hell's wrong with us, sitting around waiting for someone else to find _our_ young master? I say it's high time we take the fight to _them_! What we need is to divide and conquer! I'll go into town with lady Elizabeth and Paula! Maylene, you, Tanaka and Finny go off on your own! We'll get our young master and Sebastian back if it's the last thing we do!"

"Yeah!" the servants chime. "Ho. Ho. Ho" Tanaka chuckles.

...

"Okay then" Bard raises his hand in a wave as the man walks away, "Thanks anyway."

Bard, Lizzy and Paula have spent the last few hours asking random people on the street if they've seen a short boy with gray hair and an eyepatch or a tall man with red eyes most likely dressed in black, in such words. Neither one has yielded any results.

Lizzy sighs sadly and leans against Paula. "We've been talking to people for hours" she moans, "No one's even known they're missing. We can't just ask everyone in England! Ooh!" She buries her face in her hands and snivels a bit. "Don't cry, lady Elizabeth!" Paula kneels and puts his hands on her shoulders. "What would the young master say if he saw you like this?" Bard grins, "He never gives up in anything, so don't _you_ give up trying to find him, huh?"

She sniffs once and wipes her eyes. "You're right" she snivels and straightens her back, "And besides, it's my job to take care of him. I _will_ be his wife one day." She walks forward a few steps and looks back at the adults. "Well, come on then!" she says sternly, then grins, "Ciel's not just going to walk right up to us, is he?"

"You're right, lady Elizabeth" Paula smiles. "And hey, what're we getting so nervous for, anyway?" Bard beams, "I bet by now Maylene, Finny and mister Tanaka have already found 'em!"

...

Maylene, Tanaka and Finny have not "found 'em". And they are not so optimistic as Bard.

"What are we gonna _do_, Maylene?" Finny looks up quickly before burying his face back into his knees. They've had to stop a few times for Tanaka. This time they've taken to sitting in an alley. "Do you think Bard'll be mad if we don't bring young master and mister Sebastian home?"

"I dunno" Maylene sighs, "I'm really worried, Finny. I'm starting to think something really terrible happened to one of them, and the other just doesn't want to have to break it to us."

"Shame to you both!" Tanaka declares. The young adults look up at him in surprise. They haven't seen real Tanaka in four months, give or take a few weeks. "Do you have so little faith in mister Michaelis?" he asks, "You should know better than to doubt him. I am certain that wherever they are, they are both perfectly safe."

They both look away guiltily. "You're right, mister Tanaka" Maylene decides. She jumps to her feet and clenches her fist. Tanaka smiles, pleased, as he deflates. "Mister Sebastian will keep them both out of danger! But it's up to us to make sure that they get home! Right, Finny? !"

Silence.

"Finny?"

"Ahhh..."

Finny is busy staring dreamily at some exotic bird on display in a pet store. "So pretty" he sighs. Maylene hangs her head with a small groan.

...

"Maybe we should split up" Maylene suggests when Finny is through admiring birds, "We'll cover more ground that way, and maybe one of us will find them sooner."

"Good idea!" Finny grins, "You go that way with mister Tanaka, and I'll go this way!"

Without discussing where or how to find each other later, they go their separate ways.

...

"Young master!" Finny hollers down a deserted street, "Mister Sebastian!"

"Are you lost?"

"WAH! !" Finny jumps. "Huh?" He turns toward the sound of the voice and blushes at the woman talking to him, "Um, no, I'm okay. I'm actually looking for my master and his butler."

She furrows her brows and lifts and lowers her hand as she talks. "Short little grey - haired kid with an eyepatch and a tall butler with red eyes that loves black?"

"That's them!" Finny leans forward eagerly. "Have you seen them? !"

Sophia looks at the ground sadly. "Not for a couple of weeks, no."

"What? !" Finny is horrified, "What happened to them? ! Oh, wait," a thought occurs to him, "Maybe I should find my friends first so you can tell all of them." He blushes and rubs the back of his head shyly. "My memory isn't so great."

"I'm happy to help" she smiles, "Where are they?"

"Eh..." Finny only realizes his problem then, "L - let's look for them."

She lets him take her hand and tug her back the way he came.

...

By some stroke of fortune, (hers or theirs is anyone's guess) everyone looking for Ciel and Sebastian, including Soma and Agni, has come together when Finny and Sophia find them. "Guys! Guys!" Finny calls excitedly, "Look who I found! She says she knows where young master and Sebastian are!"

"What? !" Soma lunges at Sophia and grabs her shoulders, much to her surprise, "What's happened to Ciel? !" His eyes narrow suspiciously. "Do you have something to do with this? !"

"Prince Soma!" Finny yanks him off of Sophia and steps between them, "Don't be so rude to... Uh..." he looks back at Sophia, whose name he hasn't remembered to ask, "What's you're name?"

After exchanging names, Sophia explains what happened on the night Ciel and Sebastian disappeared, with a few alterations: "Two men attacked Sebastian and hit him in the head with a pipe, and then attacked me. Ciel was attacked by some woman called 'Fenice' when I turned my back. They were all gone when I woke up" she finishes.

"Oh, no, mister Sebastian!" Maylene wails, "I hope they're both all right!"

"He was probably alive when they left, or they wouldn't have bothered to take him with them" Sophia tries to comfort her.

"Did you get a look at any of their faces?" Bard asks. She shakes her head. "They all had masks and hoods" she answers, "I really couldn't tell you who they might have been. But I did find this on my floor when I woke up." She reaches into her basket and takes out a silver button emblazoned with the four - leaf clover crest of the Irish Mob.

"C'mon!" Bard snatches it from her hand, "Let's take this to detective Aberline! Maybe he can put in a call to Ireland!"

"Or to the docks," Agni suggests, "in case any boats bound for Ireland have left in the last few weeks."

"Goodbye, Sophia!" Finny waves to her as he and the others turn to leave. "Take care, Finny!" she smiles and waves back for a minute. Her smile fades when she turns the other way.

...

There is a tall, apparently dozing dark - skinned man waiting for her at her house. She takes a loose pebble from the road and pitches it at him to bring him around. He blinks and then glares, but relaxes a bit when he sees that it's her. "Well?" he raises an eyebrow. "Like puppies after a ball" she smirks, then tilts her head thoughtfully. "Although that Finny kid was kind of sweet. I really hope nothing happens to him."

"What does it matter if it does?" the man asks, and jumps over her roof with the help of a barrel. She shrugs in response and goes to put the teas she bought in the cupboard. She doesn't mind taking her time. There is a tunnel system under the amphitheater where she'll hide Ciel's cage and the altar on days she doesn't feel like carrying him around, or in moments like these, when she feels like going out.

She knows Sebastian won't ever find it. The thought makes her smile.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** This one fought a little bit.


	6. Rescuer

**A/N:** Starr3200, thanks for the review :)

* * *

><p><strong>XXX<strong>

**Warning: Contains EXTREME violence toward OCs and possible OOC - ness.**

**XXX**

This probably won't even have to be timed perfectly. Sebastian is almost ashamed of himself. How did he not notice this sooner?

The hallways are deserted during and after the fights. Completely. There's not even a mouse scurrying about for him to worry about stepping on and making noise. It's almost _too_ easy.

Still, the memory of what Fenice said pokes irritatingly at the back of his mind:

_"It's not going to change your situation; Ferro'll still want you, and Ciel and Funtom company will still be in the way of that." _

He smirks whenever he thinks of it. The answer is hidden in the question.

"Well, as the butler of Phantomhive, what would we do if I couldn't guarantee my young master's safety?"

...

He wanders the halls for a few hours that night after the fighting has stopped, just trying to get an idea of where everything leads. As expected, he passes no one in the halls. Everyone else is probably either tending to the more seriously injured or sleeping off their own injuries. Sebastian grins a little as he progresses.

_"Somebody up there must like me. Grell Sutcliff, perhaps?"_

It doesn't take much for him to guess at a possible ulterior motive. It makes him scoff.

"Pfft. I'm not that grateful."

...

"You're certain about this, Mister Michaelis?" Randall says into the phone, and Sebastian nods.

"That's right. There's a door at the back of the alley between the sixth and seventh apartment complexes on Cedar Street. It leads to a staircase. Just follow it, you'll find what you're looking for."

"Right then" Randall huffs, "I'll send a squadron down immediately."

"No" he interrupts, "Tonight, a quarter after ten. The actual fighting will be in full swing." And _he'll_ have had the opportunity to sneak off. He's only put down for one fight, anyway.

"Fine" Randall sounds displeased. "By the way, I know that little whelp's been turned loose since before this case started. Even without a title to hide behind he still acts like he's better than every other citizen." - Sebastian assumes he's talking to himself - "I should arrest him for deceiving Scotland Yard."

"I've been meaning to speak with you about that."

"Oh?"

"You see," Sebastian begins pleasantly, "even if he is an ordinary citizen now, please understand that I am _quite_ protective of my young master." His eyes flash pink. "I simply won't stand for someone other than myself laying their hands on him."

Randall is silent.

"I'm glad we understand each other" Sebastian beams, and hangs up.

...

"Evening, 'Valiere."

Fenice falls into step beside him, carrying his young master in her arms. He looks dazed, almost drugged.

"I hope you're well - rested and ready for tonight" she continues genially. Sebastian does not miss how she curls her fingers around Ciel's a little tighter, so that her nail tips poke against his jugular vein. He doesn't speak to her.

"Hmph" she sulks, "Fine. When Ciel grows up to have no sense of etiquette toward women, it's _your_ fault." She turns down the nearest hallway briskly, her cloak bouncing a little with her steps. Sebastian continues toward the ring with a smile. The knife hidden in his coat sleeve pokes his wrist as if answering some question.

...

Sebastian looks up with the rest of the crowd at Ferro. His opponents always end up begging for mercy within the first few minutes or so. He didn't feel particularly merciful tonight, and he needed to drag it out a little bit for his plan to work, so the fight has taken up a little under ten of the fifteen minutes he has.

Ferro tilts his thumb up, signaling for Sebastian to let the guy at his feet live. The latter pockets his knives and rolls his eyes, mostly out of habit, as the injured man is carried out of the ring. He's only been allowed to kill three people in the month he's been here. It's annoying having to endure human tenderness.

He glances customarily at Fenice through his eyelashes as he passes her. His young master's head is tilted against her shoulder. The child blinks absently the feet of the man sitting next to them. Fenice nods her head approvingly at him. He narrows his eyes and looks away from her, taking careful note to walk more angrily now that he has.

Then he does something new; He climbs a stairway that leads to Ferro's seat, high above the gore. The man looks curiously at Sebastian.

"May I speak to you for a moment, Mr. Ferro?"

He looks bemused, but nods with a smile. He waves the fight on, and the crowd cheers as they leave. Sebastian hears the familiar smacks of a fist fight and rolls his eyes. This crowd always goes wild for them.

...

Sebastian leads Ferro in zigzags for about three minutes. "Is something wrong, Cavaliere?" Ferro finally asks. "Nothing at all, Mr. Ferro" he replies, thinking to himself that this guy is not _nearly_ suspicious enough of him, "Just a small matter I needed to discuss with you."

_"And buy myself some time. The Yard should be arriving in just a few seconds..." _

...

He leads Ferro into a bare stone room. The latter shuts the door.

"So you must have heard the rumors, eh?" Ferro guesses, "Well, I'm not gonna deny that they're true."

"What rumors?" Sebastian really has no idea what he's talking about.

"Oh, you hadn't heard?" Ferro tilts his head, "Oops. Oh well, I may as well admit it now." He glances off to the side. "I've been... Hoarding a small, well, actually a fairly _large_ portion of your salary. I know it was a shameful thing to do, but if I'd paid you in full you would've been able to buy me out!" He laughs for a second. "You _do_ understand, don't you?"

"Of course," Sebastian smiles pleasantly with a dismissive wave of his hand, "I'm not concerned about that, really." He turns away from the man with a serious look. "But that isn't why I called you here."

"Oh no?"

Ferro empties his gun into the back of Sebastian's head. The demon's legs give out under him. His blood is lost in his dark hair.

Ferro lowers his gun and frowns at the dead man before him. If he _really_ expected him to go alone and unarmed to a secluded location with a guy he only hired by threatening to kill some kid, he _deserved_ to die.

"Che" he sneers, holstering his gun, "Dumbass." He turns from the corpse.

"Ouch."

He halts. There's no way-

"That hurt. Even like this." Sebastian sits up and prods at one of the holes in his head, erupts into a coughing fit and contemplates the bullet fragments in his hand. He looks back at Ferro questioningly. "Were those bullets hollow?"

"How..." Ferro backs up a step, "That isn't... You shouldn't -!"

Sebastian smiles darkly and gets to his feet. "As the butler of Phantomhive, what would we do if I couldn't survive a few bullet wounds?"

Ferro looks away for a few seconds to reload his gun. He can't quite make the connection in his panic that shooting Sebastian again won't have a different effect from the first six times.

His eyes widen as Sebastian presses one of Fenice's knives into his throat.

"A word of advice, _sir_" he grins mockingly, "Don't ever assume that you have the allegiance of a found dog."

He restrains his want to behead the man and settles for slitting his throat. He waits until the puddle of blood has grown to satisfactory size before curling Ferro's fingers around the hilt of the blade. Gloved hands come in very handy sometimes.

"Even a rat will bite back when it's forced into a corner" he reminds Ferro's carcass as he leaves the room.

...

The ring is in full panic when he steps out of the room. He is nearly bowled over by Vespa. His dark blue eyes are wide. "Come on, we've gotta go!" he insists, tugging on Sebastian's sleeve, "The Yard's here, they're taking down everybody they can't cuff!"

"I have to find Fenice first" he pulls his sleeve out of Vespa's grasp, "There's something I need to get off my chest, just in case this is really it."

Vespa looks confused, but turns and runs at the sound of approaching footsteps. Sebastian rolls his eyes and shakes his head. There really is no honor among thieves.

...

Sebastian waits for the officer chasing a woman in a long red skirt to round a corner, then hurries down the stairs to the amphitheater.

Ciel's wrists and ankles are clamped to the altar. His eyes are shut tightly and he is shivering. He even whines occasionally in his fright.

Fenice is standing over him, one heel planted on his sternum. She has her white cloak on over her combat outfit and a different pair of boots than normal. They look almost the same, but the heels of these boots are smooth, narrow cones made of polished metal long enough to stab through his young master's heart if she feels like it.

"I'm missing a knife" Fenice remarks, "Am I going to be wanted for Ferro's murder in the morning?" She pulses her heel on Ciel's chest. He whines again and shudders.

Sebastian frowns at her. "You're a persistent girl, I'll say that about you."

"'Girl'?" she repeats, then smiles and touches her cheek, "You flatter me, thinking I'm so young."

"You give yourself too much credit" he retorts. She glares at him. "Well, there goes _my_ good mood." She presses her foot down harder on Ciel's chest and leaves it there. Ciel gasps. "I wonder who'll take it harder; you watching me kill him or him watching me kill you." She backs off the altar, lands smoothly and strokes his carotid artery for a minute, the looks at Sebastian. "What _is_ he to you, anyway?"

"He is my young master" Sebastian answers, "I have sworn to protect him."

"Fascinating. Now what _is_ he to you? Toy, play pet, closet whore, what?"

"You have no reason to know" he answers.

"Hey, do you mind if I ask a question?" she asks, "It's kind of personal, and it's about him." She points at Ciel.

"You may not" Sebastian answers. Fenice taps the emblem on her white cloak pin with her free hand. "This cult we're imitating" she says, "How does he know about it? And why does he have the same symbol burned into his chest?" Her voice takes on the tone of a scared child. "Sebastian, _what_ happened to him?"

"I don't have to answer your questions" he answers, "And quite frankly, I've grown tired of this game."

"Well, then, let's settle this like adults." Fenice vaults - very gracefully, Sebastian will castrate himself before admit - over the altar and faces him. Without looking over her shoulder, she unlatches Ciel's cuffs. He scrambles over the side of the altar, goes sprawling, scurries back into the cage and pulls the door shut behind him.

Sebastian ignores him and smiles at Fenice. "That's fine with me."

She draws her dual knife without separating it and throws aside her cloak. Her eyes narrow at Sebastian. "I'm going to enjoy this."

"As am I."

Fenice lowers her eyebrows as Sebastian's eyes turn bright pink. She looks around the darkening room. "Wh - what the?" she stammers. She stares wide - eyed and pivots in each direction. "Wh - what is this?" She glares and brandishes her knife at Sebastian. "What the hell are you? !"

Sebastian's smile widens, his pointed teeth gleaming unnaturally.

"I'm just one hell of a butler."

The darkness quickly covers the whole room. Fenice's eyes swivel around in her head, trying to pinpoint where Sebastian might be. Suddenly she is pulled back against a male chest. His face is so close to her ear that she can feel him grinning. "Tell me something, miss Brown" he asks pleasantly.

The backs of Fenice's knees are cut out from under her. She props herself up on her hands and looks around frantically, trying to figure out where Sebastian is.

"How many times a night did you strike my young master?" As if he doesn't already know. The room suddenly sounds as if it's filled with men and women talking in synch, even though Sebastian hasn't moved. "Fifty? One hundred? More?" Fenice's head whips back and forth, then she curls in on herself, exposing her back.

"In the name of the fa-"

Sebastian's eyes and grin widen as he flexes his claws. He still loves that moment of the hunt when the prey realizes that it's going to die.

So quickly that his hands are a blur, Sebastian stabs and slashes over a thousand times into Fenice's back. If he wasn't so busy enjoying himself, he might have commend her for not screaming.

Sebastian is suddenly kneeling beside her. She probably doesn't see him and continues to gawk at the ground, her chest heaving shallowly. "You look upset" he remarks with false sympathy. "Think of it this way..."

He stabs his hand out through her stomach.

"It took a demon to finally kill you."

Her mouth and eyes widen at the unexpected blow. Sebastian glowers at her corpse as it sags forward on his arm and rips his hand out of her. He feels - dare he say it? - unclean to be touching her.

He stares contemptuously at his bloody hand. Not wanting to ruin his clothes any further, he picks up her cloak and cleans himself with it before throwing it in her body's general direction. He frowns down at her stupefied face and rolls her with his foot onto her stomach. "Goodbye, Sophia" he says as if it's a curse.

The darkness recedes back to him, and he is suddenly aware of the whimpering boy huddled in a corner of the cage. "Young master!"

Ciel doesn't react when Sebastian pulls the door off its hinges. It worries him. "Young master, listen to me," he tries to snap him out of it, "you're out of the cage now."

Ciel jumps like he's been shocked when Sebastian puts his hand on his shoulder. The latter pulls away, not sure what to expect. Ciel crawls forward with an unhinged look in his eyes and grabs onto Sebastian's face. He is shaking so hard he almost can't breathe. Sebastian doesn't move. It crosses his mind that it's probably a good thing that a broken neck can't kill him.

"Se - Sebas... Tian" Ciel strokes his quivering hands over the sides of Sebastian's face, through his hair, even over his mouth and eyes. His shivering calms just a smidgen and his breathing quietens. "Se - Sebastian" he sounds a little more confident. He brushes Sebastian's bangs out of his face and leans back a small fraction, though his breathing is still heavy.

Sebastian smiles at him and bows his head, covering his heart.

"Yes, my lord."

Ciel withdraws his hands and blinks dazedly at his butler. He falls forward into Sebastian's chest, and the demon's arms curl around him. Sebastian backs out of the cage and lifts Ciel fully into his arms, tilting the young earl's head against his shoulder.

Sebastian smiles. "Let's go home" he suggests.

Using the spectators' seats as a staircase, he jumps up to and out the window over the arena, smiling to himself when Ciel curls a little further into his chest.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** "Aww" with me ^w^.

_All this time, spent in vain,  
>wasted years, wasted gain,<br>all is lost, hope remains,  
>and this war's not over.<em>

_There's a light, there's the sun,  
>taking all the shattered ones<br>to the place we belong,  
>and his love will conquer all. <em>


	7. Visitors

**Warning: Contains shinigami, possible OOC - ness on their part, definite OOC - ness on Sebastian's part, OCs, convoluted backstories and stripping. Yes, you read right, stripping. Of clothes.**

* * *

><p>Sebastian's progress is purposely slow. He hadn't noticed how much he's missed holding his young master. Ciel shifts and murmurs something in his sleep and Sebastian smiles down at him. It's kind of nice to be needed...<p>

"Seeeebyyy!"

_"Why does something always interrupt?"_

He doesn't stop until Grell jumps in front of him. "Hiii, Sebby" the redhead wiggles his fingers in a wave. "Would you _please_ try to be quiet?" Sebastian glances at him, "My young master is asleep."

"Huh" Grell frowns and looks down at him. His face screws up in speculation. "Y'know, he's kinda cute when he sleeps."

Sebastian frowns at him, inexplicably annoyed.

"It's been too long, Sebby" Grell declares, "What _has_ it been, a month?" He crosses his arms and pouts. "You know, Sebby, throwing me into the ground like that wasn't nice!" He gestures with his hand. He suddenly stops to consider something, "Me. Sebby. Throwing. Sebby and I in the throes of passion!"

Sebastian swears he feels his brain lose a few ounces as his IQ drops.

"And in Will's office! Oh, the scandal! And then - Ah! Will walks in on us! Oh, his sorrow, his -"

"Excuse me" Sebastian leaps onto Grell's head and springs off onto the next building.

"Waaait, Sebbyyy!" Grell whines.

He does not.

* * *

><p>Ciel doesn't stir as Sebastian strips his bloodied shirt off and washes his back. It takes a bit of energy for him to smooth away the whipping scars. He almost wishes Sophia were still alive so that he could take them out on her own skin.<p>

He lays Ciel in bed and leaves him to sleep off the last month. Luckily, there is no further annoyance from Grell that night.

* * *

><p>There is, however, further annoyace from Grell the next morning while he is preparing Ciel's breakfast. He is in the middle of shaping biscuits when his shrill voice sounds behind him.<p>

"SEEBYYY!"

Sebastian stops and steps out of the way of the red - haired missile that's just dived at him. Before said missile has a chance to crash into what he's already prepared, he grabs the man by his pants cuff and flips him vertical again, then grabs the back of his shirt collar and pulls him against his chest. He frowns down at him. "Must you always make so much noise?" he asks in annoyance, "My young master is still asleep."

"Haah" Grell sighs and rubs his back against Sebastian's chest. The taller man drops him and "misplaces" his feet when he tries to step over him. "Please leave now" he asks, "I have work that I need to catch up on."

"Ah, you're as bad as Will" Grell leans against the counter and sulks, "It's not like that kid's all that satisfying, anyway."

"What are you talking about?" Sebastian doesn't break pace in his baking. Grell shrugs. "You ate that other girl's soul last night, didn't you?" He opens his ledger and pretends to read it.

"What girl?"

Grell shuts his ledger and raises his eyebrow in confusion. "Sophia Brown?"

Sebastian looks legitimately insulted. "_Why_ would I do that?" he scowls off to the side, "The soul of some two - faced street cur doesn't appeal to me."

"Huh?" Grell tilts his head, confused, "But Will said that you - WAH!"

As if on cue, there is a shattering of glass as Will's scythe shoots out from behind the startled butler and thunks Grell in the middle of his head. Sebastian grabs hold of it before it has a chance to lodge in the wall. He cranes his head back to look at the latest intruder.

"You know," he frowns in Will's direction, "you _could_ have come in through the door."

"And do _you_ some small favor? Not likely."

Will retracts his scythe (Sebastian lets go of it before it has a chance to cut his hand) and adjusts his glasses. He opens his roster and scans the page briefly. Grell sits up and rubs his head, moaning.

"At 10:27 yesterday evening, target Sophia Brown was killed" he recites and glares at Sebastian through his eyelashes, "Cause of death: Suffocation due to bifurcation of the diaphragm." He turns his attention back to his roster. "According to field agent Ronald Knox's report, upon his arrival at 11:48 the same night, her soul had already been extracted and there were traces of demonic energy on her body."

"Yes, and?" the butler shrugs, "The fact that a demon got to her first doesn't automatically make me guilty." Sebastian smiles cuttingly at Will. "And your incompetence isn't my problem to deal with."

Will glares at him. "Watch your mouth, dog" he says threateningly. "What is it?" Sebastian tilts his head a little, "Did I strike a nerve, Mr. Spears?"

The demon and reaper hold each other's gazes for a while. Will finally adjusts his glasses and turns from him. "I'll be keeping an eye on you" he warns him, "You would do well to stay in line." He faces the window. "We're leaving, Grell Sutcliffe."

"Aww!" Grell whines, "I wanna stay here with Sebby!"

"_We're leaving_, Grell Sutcliffe" Will insists.

Grell moans and slumps over until his fingers are brushing the floor. He snaps erect suddenly and brushes his hair back with a sigh. "Until tomorrow, Sebby dear" he slides over to him. Sebastian watches as he follows Will out the window and is gone.

Sebastian frowns at the shattered glass when they're gone. That damned reaper really gets under his skin sometimes. He sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose. There's no use in fuming over it. Right now he has a window to fix along with breakfast to prepare.

* * *

><p>"Good morning, young master."<p>

Ciel stirs when the curtains are drawn. Sebastian turns back to smile at him. "I hope you've slept well."

The Earl looks off to the side and frowns in embarrassment. "About yesterday..."

Sebastian opens Ciel's wardrobe. "I've seen you worse" he smiles. He settles on a red suit and ribbon along with gray socks and brown shoes. Ciel is silent for the most part, then when Sebastian ties the ribbon, "What happened to Sophia?"

The butler smirks and pulls the bow tight. "Dead" he answers simply, "As is Ferro. I doubt we'll ever have to worry about them again." He drapes Ciel's coat around his shoulders. "Good" he shoves his arms through the sleeves. Sebastian can tell what he's talking about from that glare.

He smirks.

He picks up the teapot just as the sand runs out. "I've prepared Twining's Chai this morning, young master" he hands him the cup. He waits for him to finish, then takes the cup from him again. "A breakfast of biscuits with grape preserves, Yorkshire ham and a spinach omelette has been prepared for you" he hands him the paper, "There are some documents that require your signature waiting in your office."

Ciel's eyes bulge as he reads the headline and throws the paper aside. "We're going to Westminster" he says, "Now."

"Yes, sir" Sebastian follows him.

* * *

><p>During the night, someone has set fire to the courtyard of Westminster Abby, a mess of lines and curves across most of the field. There have been no casualties.<p>

Scotland Yard is already there when Ciel and Sebastian arrive.

"Good morning, Ciel!" Aberline greets him without his customary smile, "Did the Queen send you here?"

"No," Ciel answers, "I came of my own accord." He starts to pass the detective. "I wanted to see which of us will solve this little puzzle first" he smirks back at Aberline. No doubt Randall hasn't told him of his resignation as Queen's Dog.

"Ehm" the man raises a hand, "These really won't make sense unless viewed from above." He points at a few of the higher floors of the clock tower.

"All right then" Ciel looks up, "Show us."

"Sure" Aberline nods.

* * *

><p>Sebastian is surprised at how easily Ciel climbs up the many flights of stairs necessary, but refrains from saying so. There will be plenty of time for teasing afterward.<p>

"There" Aberline points when they reach the appropriate window, "We just have no idea what it means."

Ciel leans further forward.

Well, that's unexpected.

Someone has gone to the trouble of burning the symbol of his covenant with Sebastian into the Abby's yard.

Still, that in itself is odd. His mind immediately starts running through paranoia - born scenarios. Perhaps an enemy has gotten wind of his butler's identity and this is their way of blackmailing him? He turns toward Sebastian to ask his opinion.

He is not expecting to see what he sees.

Sebastian is staring at the symbol in what can only be described as horror. His hands - both? - are pressed against the window lattice, and almost look like they're shaking. Ciel swears he can hear him breathing, too.

"What's the matter with you?"

Sebastian doesn't answer him right away.

"Sebastian!"

Sebastian snaps out of it, though his eyes don't return to their normal width. "It's nothing" he leans back and runs his fingers through his bangs. When did he start doing that? "I just remembered... I might have left a fire burning... We should leave soon."

Ciel frowns speculatively. Sebastian knows that his lie has not been bought. Aberline is slightly confused by the tall man's behavior.

"Well, I don't recognize it," Ciel says thoughtfully, turning his attention back to the pentagram, "but I'll look into it later. For now, though, I'd like to reexamine the scene. Maybe there was a specific incendiary used that can be tied to someone." He turns back toward the staircase. "Let's go, Sebastian."

"Yes, sir."

Ciel repeats to himself that did _not_ see Sebastian shiver on the way down.

* * *

><p>Ciel doesn't really need to look around further, he just wants to confirm his suspicions. Sebastian's eyes remain wide and fixed on the ground, and he keeps his hands balled into loose fists. Ciel can clearly see his shoulders rising and falling as he breathes.<p>

"I think I've seen all I need to" Ciel finally decides. Basic human kindness dictates that he leave before his butler has a panic attack. "We're done here. Let's go, Sebastian."

"Yes, sir." He sounds just a tad bit too eager to leave.

The butler manages to stay a step or two behind Ciel at all times, but his footsteps are quick and choppy, like he might break into a sprint at any moment.

Sebastian follows Ciel stiffly into the carriage and sits beside him. He continues to stare at only at the seat directly in front of him. Out of curiosity, Ciel tries to spur him into a conversation, but he only offers one - or two - syllable replies, and he eventually gives up.

Ciel's brows furrow at him. Truth be known, he's a bit worried himself. What could possibly work Sebastian into this kind of panic?

* * *

><p>The rest of the day proceeds fairly normally, save for Sebastian never quite snapping out of that nervous haze. Ciel decides not to confront him until he is being readied for bed.<p>

As Sebastian stands and takes the candelabra, Ciel rolls over and looks up at him with a frown. "What are you not telling me?" he demands. Sebastian does not smile as he looks at him. "Nothing, young master."

Sebastian's eyes shift to shimmering pink. Ciel instantly starts to feel drowsy and his head drops against his pillow.

* * *

><p>He walks down the steps quickly, pulling his arms through his dark trench coat sleeves as he goes. There are two or three rushing noises for each of his steps, along with the occasional female giggle. His turns his head toward the sound once, brows furrowed worryingly, and sprints back to Westminster.<p>

* * *

><p>He stares down at the courtyard nervously and inhales in an unsuccessful attempt to steady himself. He's sure that they aren't waiting for him down there. Nowhere near comforted by that fact, he jumps off the roof top and starts walking. He chews on his lower lip, obviously unnerved. The giggle sounds again, much closer. Sebastian feels a cold lump drop in his stomach and ignite.<p>

He stops in the center of the pentagram and waits. A breeze blows his coat around his knees. He tells himself that the breezy November night is the reason for his shaking.

Footsteps crackle very softly over dying grass. "You got our message?" a male voices inquires.

"It wasn't difficult to figure out" Sebastian replies. He purses his lips as soon as he's said it. He knows immediately that he's said the wrong thing.

"Oh my!" the giggling female voice from before exclaims, falsely scandalized, "What a bold way of speaking you've developed!"

"I meant no disrespect." Did his voice just break?

"You _must_ have" the male voice insists, "It's been nearly a minute and you've yet to address either one of us properly."

Sebastian does not turn. He kneels and hangs his head submissively. "Please forgive me" he sounds afraid, "My lord, prince Pyro, and lady Jezebeth."

Pyro tilts his white - haired head to the side. "Huh" he remarks speculatively, "Such an odd gesture."

There is a breeze, and then Sebastian is on his back with Pyro's boot on his chest, spreading his arms and legs out of reflex. Out of habit, he starts to lift his head, but turns it sideways and stares at Pyro's boot from the corner of his eyes. Pyro smirks at Sebastian's previous grunt. "Don't tell me you've gotten soft, 513?" he mocks, and digs his heel a little harder into Sebastian's chest. "Oh, stop it Pyro!" Jezebeth admonishes. She lies next to Sebastian and rubs her cheek against his. "This body's pretty. I don't want it too banged up."

Pyro sighs, annoyed, but lifts his heel off Sebastian's chest.

Jezebeth sniffs Sebastian's bangs a few times. "Mmm" she purrs, "You've fed recently. It smells good." She sits on her knees, pouts sternly and taps her index fingers together. "Shame on you for not telling us there was such a tasty soul running around!"

It's really amazing how Jezebeth can make the lightest of scoldings seem like a threat. "I meant no disrespect, my lady" Sebastian keeps his gaze locked firmly on his chest. "There's no need to act so scared" she tries to placate him, "I'm not going to hurt you." She plucks delicately at his scalp. Sebastian notices that she didn't say "we."

"Master, my lady," Sebastian is not soothed, "please, why are you here?"

"Well, 513," Pyro replies, "it occurred to me only recently that it's been nearly three years since I gave you three days to recover from our little... Disagreement."

"Then why come for me now?" he asks, and Jezebeth shrugs.

"Well, you know how wartime goes." She lies back down and traces a circle on Sebastian's chest. "We need every man we can get."

"Wait" Pyro holds up his hand. Jezebeth scoots back a step, but leans forward with curious purple eyes. Sebastian shuts his eyes and tilts his head back as Pyro sniffs his throat. "You smell freshly of human" he realizes. Sebastian does not see him glare at him. "You've contracted in the time you've been here?"

Sebastian clenches his fist. "I had though you had forgotten me, master."

"I see." Pyro plants his foot on Sebastian's adam's apple. Jezebeth does not stop him; she merely watches with a childishly intrigued expression. "I would think you know better than to make decisions for me."

"Forgive me, master! I meant you no disrespect!"

Pyro is silent for a moment. "All right" he lifts his foot from Sebastian's neck, "You are forgiven."

"Thank you, sir" Sebastian shifts into a kneeling position and bows his head.

"Come, Jezebeth" Sebastian doesn't see Pyro hold out his hand, "Let us leave him. I'm sure his master is missing him."

Sebastian's fists tighten.

"Okay!" Jezebeth bounces to her feet and latches onto Pyro's arm with a giggle. She lets go as the demons jump together into a nearby tree. Sebastian does not miss her last comment.

"We'll be seeing you, 513."

* * *

><p>Once he's sure they're gone, Sebastian gets to his feet and walks over to the nearest window. The right side of his bangs are a little disheveled, and he combs them back into place. With one last adjustment to his tie and jacket collar, he turns from the window and runs back toward the Phantomhive mansion.<p>

He really wishes he'd stop shaking so much. He can barely stand up.

* * *

><p>"Good morning, young master. It's time to get up."<p>

Ciel knows immediately that something isn't right. Sebastian's voice is still tense and errs on the strained side. His eyes are also still wider than normal, and fixed.

As usual, Sebastian reads off the breakfast list and schedule - French toast with bacon and half a grapefruit, then free until a 12:30 fencing lesson, followed by French at 2:00 and History at 4:00 - as he dresses Ciel, but his movements aren't as much confident as jumpy. Ciel is sure he can hear him breathing again. And are his fingers shaking?

Sebastian waits for him to finish a cup of simple black tea sweetened with sugar before bowing and seeing himself to the door. As a test, Ciel plucks a dart from the holder on his night table and throws it at the butler. As expected, he catches it, but throws the dart back into the holder, still wide - eyed and without a word. Ciel jumps up as he shuts the door behind him.

Sebastian is gone when the door opens.

* * *

><p>Around noon, Sebastian brings the midday snack: Simple cheesecake with kiwis and more black tea. Ciel cuts off a piece of the cheesecake with his fork and swallows it. "You've been acting strangely ever since we returned from Westminster" he remarks as easily as if discussing the weather.<p>

"I'm sorry if I've inconvenienced you, young master" Sebastian doesn't meet his gaze as he replaces everything on the cart. He still looks and sounds nervous. "What exactly does that mark mean, anyway?" the boy asks, still casual, studying the chunk of cheesecake on the end of his fork, "Does it relate to something besides our old contract?"

Sebastian smiles falsely at him. "It's nothing to be concerned about," he says in an attempt at reassurance, "You needn't burden yourself with the troubles of a butler."

"That doesn't answer my question" the Earl frowns at him through his eyelashes only to notice that Sebastian has turned toward the door. "Hey! I didn't dismiss you! Sebastian!"

The butler shuts the door behind him. Ciel jumps up from his desk and runs into the hall just as Sebastian's coattails disappear behind a corner. He does not notice the abandoned tea cart on the other side of the door.

"How dare you walk away from me when I'm talking to you!" Ciel makes no progress as he stomps after his fleeing butler, "Sebastian! Answer me!"

Sebastian doesn't acknowledge that he's being screamed at.

* * *

><p>Sebastian shuts the door to his bedroom. Ciel, who has been running to keep up with him, stops down the hall to catch his breath. With a determined glare, he grips the door handle and yan -<p>

It's locked.

Ciel bangs the side of his fist against the door. "Sebastian, let me in!"

"I'm not decent, young master."

Ciel growls furiously. "UNLOCK THIS DOOR, DAMN YOU!"

He pounds on the poor door, then when that doesn't work, resorts to shoving his shoulder against it. He doesn't care what the reason is, that damned butler has no excuse to defy him!

Said damned butler suddenly opens the door, and Ciel pitches forward into his arm. It curls a little tighter than normal around him. Sebastian looks down at the young Earl sternly.

"Young master, calm yourself. What if you were to suffer an asthmatic attack?"

"What does that mark mean? !" Ciel explodes at him, "What are you not telling me? Answer my questions, damn you!"

"I _will_" Sebastian sets him on his feet and kneels with his hand over his heart, "I promise, I will tell you everything you want to know." He stands quickly and passes him, starting down the hall. "But not now."

"When, then? !" Ciel glares and snaps at him. Sebastian halts mid stride, but doesn't look at him. "Tonight" he decides. He turns his head back toward Ciel. "But for right now, young master, we both have work that needs to be done."

* * *

><p>Ciel frowns at Sebastian as he buttons his nightshirt. "All right" he says gruffly, "It's ten o' clock at night. Are going to make good on your word any time soon?"<p>

Sebastian meets his gaze with deadened eyes. "Of course."

He stands, turns away from the boy and reaches one hand up to his throat. Ciel doesn't understand until Sebastian sets his tie on the nightstand.

"Wh- what are you doing?" Ciel recoils in horror.

Sebastian glances at him over his shoulder, but doesn't turn. "Answering your question." He continues unbuttoning his shirt from the bottom up. An embarrassed blush rises to Ciel's cheeks.

Sebastian breathes deeply once, then slides his shirt down to his elbows.

Ciel gasps.

"I had hoped you'd never see this."

The emblem of their contract is cut into Sebastian's back.

Ciel blinks at the scar for a few seconds. It isn't just a silhouette or an outline of their old mark; the diamonds are filled in and the lines are thick. He _bled_ for this.

Ciel furrows his brows. After witnessing firsthand that the demon can regrow a severed limb, the idea that he could have a simple scar is, well... Ridiculous; But there it is, staring back at him from beneath Sebastian's shoulder blades. Ciel frowns at the mark. He almost feels sorry for his butler. He reaches out and rubs his hand over one of the connective lines between two diamonds. Sebastian stiffens at the touch and hisses through his nose. Ciel pauses until he relaxes, then returns to studying the scar. It feels as soft as normal skin, but cooler and a little bit tougher, like the skin of a corpse. He skims his fingertips over one of the diamonds before splaying his fingers over the pentagram.

"What is this?"

"A mark of a slave" Sebastian answers. How humiliating for his master to know that his seemingly perfect butler is canon fodder, rather than some powerful demon lord that he could be proud to control.

"You were a slave?" Ciel pulls his hand away.

"In a sense." Sebastian rolls his shirt back up to his shoulders and re - buttons it. "I served as a soldier under another demon before you contracted me. This is his mark."

"How can you be scarred?" It sounds childish even to him.

"It was made by Laevatein. It probably won't ever heal." He adjusts his vest.

Ciel is silent, then "What _were_ you, Sebastian?"

Sebastian crouches and retrieves his tie. "A soldier" he repeats. "This mark was to identify my commander, should I ever have been captured."

"Were you?"

"No." There is no hint of pride in his voice.

"Should I be surprised that hell is at war?" Ciel sounds bored now.

"It's not. My master is. He likes to start up small wars in his spare time. Some of his demons go rogue, or earn their freedom. Others either choose to stay or have no choice."

"And you?"

He pulls his tie tight. "I was the latter."

"Who did you serve?"

"His name is Pyro. Perhaps you've heard of him. By proxy, I served under a demoness as well. Jezebeth." His jaw feels oddly sore. "I was the five - hundred - thirteenth member of the sixth sector of the thirty - eighth legion. My company specialized in espionage and guerilla tactics."

"Are they the ones who burned the courtyard?"

"Yes."

"Who are they exactly?"

Sebastian swallows roughly. "Pyro is a prince. His specialty is lies and deception." His fist clenches. "He is... Strong. Jezebeth is also a demoness of lies, as well as one of hell's most prolific succubi." He frowns with resentment. "Jezebeth is a whore, but she has an excellent strategic mind. That may be one of the reasons Pyro keeps her at his side. I can't remember not seeing them together."

On a whim Ciel asks, "Is that how you knew Claude?"

"Yes" Sebastian's confirmation is unexpected, "Though we weren't in the same legion. He was something like 682 - 4 - 23, somewhere in the top twenty. His sector specialized in interrogation. I hadn't seen him for some time, though. He bought his freedom a few centuries before I found you."

"What was your problem with each other?"

"It was mostly him who had a problem with me. I suspect he may have had some feelings for lady Jezebeth, but she always had a bit of a preference for me. She doesn't exactly limit herself to Lord Pyro."

Ciel shifts to his knees. "Why weren't they able to find you before now?"

"Mostly because they didn't concern themselves with me." Sebastian still hasn't turned to face him. He makes no move to do so. Ciel doesn't say anything.

"But when they did?"

"This mark doesn't function like a demon's covenant with a human. This is more like a cattle brand. Pyro isn't always aware of where I am, but any demon I encounter knows who I belong to."

"Why have they come for you in the first place?"

Sebastian looks back at him. "Demons are possessive of what they believe to be theirs."

Ciel looks away in thought. "Well, that's a problem for him, then" he lays back down, "You don't belong to him anymore."

"You don't understand, young master" he pulls the blankets over his shoulders, "_This_" he glares in the general direction of his back, "binds me to Pyro more absolutely than our contract ever bound me to you. I always had the option of defying your orders-" Ciel scoffs - "But as long as I bare this mark, Pyro has total sway over my will. More to the point..." He brushes back the hair over Ciel's right eye. "I'm not entirely _yours_ anymore."

"You can defeat them." Ciel rolls over.

"... I don't know."

"You don't _know_?"

"You've seen how quickly I can recover from injuries, haven't you?" He raises his right arm. "Even regrowing my arm only took me a couple of days."

"So what?"

Sebastian hangs his head for a moment. "A few days before you contracted me, I got into a bit of an argument with my master."

"Don't call him that."

"I'm sorry. I'd only just recovered from the subsequent fight when you bound yourself to me three days later."

Ciel huddles slightly into his blankets. "What about Jezebeth?"

"As I said, she's a whore, but she's a formidable tactician and fighter. She'd have to be to maintain Pyro's interest as long as she has."

"I don't doubt you" Ciel says with conviction.

"You honor me, my lord." Sebastian doesn't sound any more confident. He picks up the candelabra. "Rest well. You needn't be concerned about any of this."

* * *

><p>He winds up back in the boy's room a little after midnight. He's gotten no sense or scent of either Jezebeth or Pyro, but he'd really rather not take his chances. Also, he'd hoped that seeing his young master's assurance in him would calm his own nerves.<p>

So far, it has not.

Ciel sighs in his sleep, and Sebastian tucks a few strands of his hair behind his ear.

His back burns for a heartbeat as he does so.

He quickly pulls his hand away, lest his shaking wake his young master.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** ... I just made Sebastian take his shirt off for Ciel. You people better love me for this!

I always felt like Claude was doing most of the actual hating and Sebastian was just pissing him off to do it. Until Claude turned around and stole Ciel, of course. Then shit got real.

Also, it seems like a lot of people like to assume Sebastian was a big shot among demons before he met Ciel. I am not one of them. I think he was just another nobody, and thusly his contract with Ciel was probably one of the better things to happen to him. Y'see? I didn't even give him a name. I suck |:}.

If anyone read my finale rewrite, Sebastian's comment about Ciel possibly being the reason he's alive should make a little more sense.

And finally,

DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW WEIRD IT IS TO WRITE SCARED SEBASTIAN? Probably as weird as it is to read it! Seriously, I feel like I've broken some unspoken law here.


	8. Alone

**A/N:** I really wanna start posting four chapters a week again. Damn me and my acknowledgement of things I should be getting done but not doing them anyway!

* * *

><p><strong>XXX<strong>

**Warning: Contains content that will probably get me lynched, and some (possibly) fairly serious OOC - ness.**

**XXX**

* * *

><p>"I hope you've slept well, young master" Sebastian says brightly, drawing the drapes.<p>

Ciel sits up and frowns at Sebastian's back. The first thing to cross his mind that something's not quite right. Sebastian's acting like yesterday never happened. He still has a distant look in his eye, but his movements seem more like they always have, and his voice isn't strained anymore.

He can't decided whether he should be relieved or suspicious that things have apparently returned to normal.

The butler dresses him in a brown suit with a green bow and puts his brown heeled shoes on him. "There are a lot of documents to look over, but today is otherwise free" he recites as he stands, "The documents should take you a few hours to complete, during which time I will be running a few errands in London." He beams over his shoulder. "I have left a breakfast of cured ham with blueberry scones waiting for you in the dining hall. If you should need anything while I'm gone, just call for Tanaka or the staff."

"Sebastian."

"Yes?" he looks back over his shoulder with a confused smile. Ciel frowns at the carpet for a minute. "Did something happen last night?"

"Nothing of great importance" he answers, turning a small fraction to face him, "Why?"

Ciel sighs. "Nothing." He stands. "Escort me to the dining hall."

Sebastian bows with a smile. "Yes, my lord."

...

He is given permission to leave after escorting his young master, and a few minutes later finds himself pacing anxiously through the London crowds. The farmer's market is in full swing, with vendors hawking whatever their specific wears are and potential customers haggling over prices. It falls on Sebastian's ears like a dull roar.

The noises peters off as he gets closer to the alleys, save for an occasional skittering noise, or that wonderful giggle.

He finally stops. His head drops toward his chest.

"All right, I'm alone now" he calls. He clenches his fist. "We all know I won't fight."

...

When his vision finally swims back into focus, he doesn't know exactly where he is, but can make a pretty good guess. His arms are chained behind his back. He doesn't even bother to try breaking his bonds. If they've gone to the trouble of binding him, it's likely that the chains are stronger than he is. Probably fire - resistant, too.

Jezebeth is perched on a nearby window lattice, swinging her calves childishly. Sebastian looks away before he can meet her green gaze.

Pyro walks in a few seconds after he awakes. Sebastian shuts his eyes. "I didn't expect you to come to us willingly, 513" the white - haired demon remarks.

"I wanted to get this over with." Sebastian doesn't look at him.

"Why hand yourself over to us?" Pyro asks. "It's _me_you want" he answers, "The least a butler of Phantomhive can do is protect his young master."

"'Young master'? You contracted a child?" Jezebeth sounds shocked, "That's strange. How can a child have such a tasty soul?" She licks her upper lip. "Mmm. I'm already hungry just thinking about it."

Sebastian glares at their general direction, eye glowing. "If either of you raise a hand to my young master, I promise you neither of you will walk away."

Pyro tugs Jezebeth a little closer and glowers at him. Sebastian doesn't look away, although his eyes do narrow at the burning in his back.

"If you're trying to protect this 'young master' of yours, you're a fool" Pyro mocks him. He cards his fingers through Jezebeth's waist - length black hair as he speaks, letting the ends fall from between his fingers. "When the child comes looking for his missing pet, the only question will be who between you will watch the other die first."

Sebastian scoffs. Jezebeth huffs and kicks him a few times in the stomach. He doesn't acknowledge the blows, and she backs off, frustrated. He smiles distantly. "My young master isn't like other humans" he declares pensively, "He isn't going to send someone for me, and he's _certainly_ not going to come for me himself. Even if he _does_know where I am, he won't be unduly upset." He smirks at Pyro. "As long as I'm being honest, I'm actually rather disappointed in you, master." He jerks his wrists, rattling his chains. "You doubt your own strength and you still expect me to follow you?"

Pyro smirks and tilts his head toward Jezebeth. She nods once and is suddenly behind Sebastian. He grunts as he is roughly bent forward and his jacket and shirt are torn open, revealing his scar. As if he needs another reason for his young master to yell at him. He struggles against her grip to no avail. "What are you doing?" he glares at Pyro.

He smiles cruelly at him. "I'm going to remind you exactly _how_you've been living your life until now."

There might be one or two idiots in the world who are willing to take the word of the demon prince of lies, but Sebastian is _not_one of them. He glowers into Pyro's eyes. His own eyes flash pink. "Stay away from me!" he orders.

"You're in no position to make demands, 513." Pyro presses his hand against the pentagramon his back. "And this will be much less painful if you don't resist."

So of course Sebastian resists. He thrashes like a wild thing, both to throw them off and at the pain.

"Get off of me!"

_"Silence!"_

He had contracted with Ciel Phantomhive under Pyro's orders; he had sworn to give each of his masters a portion of the boy's soul when the contract was complete; they had helped him kill the angel Ash; his relationship with the boy had been distant by even professional standards; they had cared almost nothing for each other...

"No! That isn't true!"

"No! Young master..."

"You will obey me!"

_Jezebeth had helped him retrieve the boy; she had salvaged and reconstructed his broken memory; they had given him protection and shelter when he was ordered away..._

His struggles are weakening. "Young mas-"

Pryo's nails cut into his back. _"Submit!"_

_He had not been beaten for leaving nothing of the boy's soul for his masters as he had promised; he had offered them Fenice's soul when he'd killed her; Ciel had struck him for not ensuring that she had been killed; he had been ridiculed for his position as a demon when he had revealed his mark..._

"Master... My lord..."

"Do you remember where you belong now?"

513 opens his eyes and lifts his gaze to Pyro's chest. He lifts one of his legs into a kneeling position and bows his head.

"Yes, my lord."

Pyro smirks.

* * *

><p>"Tanaka!" Ciel decides when the old man summons him for bed that night, "Fetch my coat, hat and cane and tell Bardroy to prepare a carriage. We're going to get Sebastian."<p>

"Of course, young master" Tanaka bows. Ciel stares out the nearest window when he's gone.

_"Where have you gone now, Sebastian?"_

...

During the carriage ride Ciel thinks back over when Sebastian spoke to him that morning. He had _known_something was wrong when Sebastian had acted like last night had never happened. He picks through what had gone on after he had spoken to him. He had said he'd had errands to run for a few hours, and he'd never come back. Could Jezebeth and Pyro have taken him?

... Could he have gone back to them willingly?

Ciel tightens his grip on the handle of his cane. "No, that's impossible" he says the otherwise empty carriage, "Not only does he seem to hate them, he swore never to betray me. Contract or no, that order still stands." He frowns out the window and starts thinking of ways to punish Sebastian for going behind his back when they return home.

...

"Wait with the carriage, Tanaka" he orders as he steps down, "I'll find Sebastian myself."

"Are you sure that is wise, young master?" Tanaka asks him. Ciel smirks back at him. "How hard can it be for the queen's former dog to pick up a scent?" he asks. Tanaka smiles at him, and Ciel turns his back on the old man, his face melting into a scowl.

Tanaka waits until he turns the corner, then follows him as silently as he can manage.

...

"Sebastian!"

He turns down street after street, alley after alley.

"_Sebastian_!"

Over an hour passes.

"_SEBASTIAN_! Where are you? Come out here _now_, dammit!"

"Do you plan to waking the entire city?"

"There you are!" he turns toward him, annoyed.

The butler stares blankly back at him, the edge of his trench coat fluttering a little in a passing night breeze.

"I thought you would've taken the hint when I didn't come back" he remarks, "I always thought you were smart." He shrugs his shoulders. "Apparently I was wrong. It's happened before, if you can believe it."

"What?" Ciel is confused. He frowns and stalks over to Sebastian. "Stop talking nonsense. We're going home right now."

He grabs hold of the demon's coat, and is not expecting for his hand to be batted aside. "Don't touch me" Sebastian... Orders?

How _dare_he speak to his master like this?

"Get your hands off me!" the child yaps, raising his hand to strike his butler. His wrist is caught and he is glared sternly at. "_You're_ the one trying to strike _me_, as you may not have noticed" he tells him snidely. Ciel bares his teeth at the demon in a snarl. "Bastard!" he raises his other fist. Sebastian grabs hold of it and throws him into the middle of the street.

Ciel lies there stunned for a moment before propping himself up shakily on his arms. The man that looks like Sebastian stands over him, glowering scornfully. "I told you not to touch me, _human_" he says as if it's a curse. Ciel blinks at him, astounded. It occurs to him that hasn't been called 'young master' once through this whole exchange.

"Is there a problem, 513?"

They both look up as Pyro materializes from the shadows with Jezebeth leering at his side. Sebastian drops to one knee and covers his heart, as he has done for Ciel so many times. "Lord Pyro, Lady Jezebeth" he greets them. Ciel's eyes go wide; What is this?

"This must be the human he's contracted" Jezebeth points a long - nailed finger at Ciel, "Should I kill him for you, Pyro?"

"It's only a human, my lady" Sebastian stands, "You shouldn't trouble yourself with him." He looks over his shoulder at Ciel in distaste. "He doesn't deserve to stain your hands with his blood."

Ciel is oddly stung by his words, and even more confused. Not twenty - four hours ago he was calling Jezebeth a whore, and now he's bowing to her, calling her "lady' and saying that Ciel doesn't deserve to die by her hand? What's going on here?

"Let us go, then" Pyro turns. Jezebeth giggles and holds his arm. "Yes, sir" Sebastian answers, turning to follow them. Ciel is finally pulled out of his trance. He stands as quickly as he can. "Sebastian..." He takes a weak step forward. "_Sebastian_" he says more forcefully, "Return to the manor with me at once!"

Sebastian ignores him and jumps onto a rooftop with his fellow demons. "_Sebastian_!" Ciel starts to run after him. He trips over a loose cobblestone and goes sprawling. The demons are too far away by now for him to hope to pursue them. "Sebastian, come _back_ here!" he shrieks after him, "It's an _order_!" His head droops toward the ground. "It's an _order_..." His fingers curl suddenly into fists.

"IT'S AN _ORDER_!"

Someone grabs his shoulders. His eyes widen and he reaches for his gun. "Young master!" Tanaka exclaims. Ciel instantly stops struggling and hangs limply in Tanaka's arms. "What's happened?" the old steward presses, "Where's Mr. Michaelis?"

Ciel doesn't answer his questions. He seems to have shut down. Tanaka doesn't press any further. He picks Ciel up and sets him on his feet. "Come, then" he says quietly, "You'll catch your death out here."

Ciel doesn't resist him as Tanaka guides him back to the carriage and brings him home, or when he strips him down and bathes him before buttoning his nightshirt and tucking the blankets around him, or when he leaves before checking to see that he has fallen asleep.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** I'm a monster.

It's one thing to take Ciel away from Sebastian, he can survive on his own, but you can't take away a damaged shota's one ray of light! What a way to treat Ciel on his birthday!

... Yeah, I know it's not his birthday anymore.

... And incidentally, why does everyone make "gift art" for Ciel for his birthday? He doesn't even like his birthday!


End file.
